, 


1639- 


PROCEEDINGS 


CELEBRATION 


* 


ANNIVERSARY 


SETTLEMENT  OF  GUILFORD,  CONN., 

SEPTEMBER    8th,    9th,   and    10th, 

1889. 


NEW   HAVEN,  CONN.: 
THE  STAFFORD  PRINTING  CO.,  86-90  CROWN  STREET. 

1889. 


ERRATA. 

[The  well  known  difficulty  of  avoiding  errors  in  printing  names  and 
dates  was  increased  in  the  present  case  by  the  impossibility  of  submitting 
proof-sheets  to  all  who  furnished  material.  Some  unquestionable  misprints 
are  left  unnoticed  because  conjectural  emendations  cannot  be  verified  with- 
out causing  much  delay.  Doubtless  others  have  been  overlooked.  The 
various  papers  were  corrected  by  their  authors.  Some  variations  of  state- 
ment, where  there  is  a  conflict  of  authorities,  will  easily  be  understood. 
A  correction  has  been  ventured  on  page  225,  in  the  full  confidence  of  the 
writer's  approval.  Dr.  Johnson  was  a  Whig  throughout,  but  thought  the 
Declaration  of  Independence  unwise.) 


Page  3,  erase  quotation  marks  after  "  Guilford,"  and  insert  after  "  Town 
Clerk." 

Page  5,  line  12,  for  "  power  "  read  "  part." 

Page  7,  line  34,  for  "  M  Ginley  "  read  "  McGinley." 

Page  8,  line  6,  for  "  C  "  read  "  E." 

Page  12,  at  foot,  for  "  Neal  "  read  "  Neil,"  (so  elsewhere). 

Page  15,  for  "  Northrup  "  read  "  Northrop." 

Page  138,  line  17,  for  "day"  read  "  century." 

Page  141,  line  2,  for  "  N.  F.  Wilcox  "  read  "  W.  F.  Willcox." 

Page  141,  line  19,  for  "  Charles"  read  "  George." 

Page  144,  line  8,  for  "  William  "  read  "Albert." 

Page  187,  insert  in  the  brackets,  "Andrew  Ward  (1690)." 

Page  195,  enclose  lines  4-12  in  brackets  [  ]. 

Page  201,  line  15,  for  "bare-skins,"  read,   "bear-skin's." 

Page  225,  line  n    for  "  Independence  "  read  "  freedom." 

Page  232,  lines  i  and  n,  for  "  Hoadley"  read  "  Hoadly." 

Page  243,  line  24,  for  "  1866"  read  "  1886." 

Pages  244-5,  insert  before  list,  "Modern  owners,  etc.,  in  the  second 
column." 

Page  257,  line  7,  for  "Andrews  "  read  "  Andrewes,"  (so  on  page  262). 

Pa^e  2S7.  line  ifi.   for  "  Tottenham  "  rear!   "  Tottenham  " 


CATALOGUE. 

No.  51,  for  "  Eldred  "  read  "  Eldad." 

No.  54,  for  "  Mrs.,"  read   "  Miss." 

Nos.  131,  132,  for  "  Ettisley"  read  "Eltisley." 

No.  133,  for  "  Hoadley"  read  "  Hoadly." 

Nos.  147,  148,  for  "  Stone  "  read  "  Stowe." 

No.  183,  for  "XIV."  read  "XVI." 

No.  190,  for  "  1740"  read  "  1760." 

No.  210,  for  "  Virgilti"  read  "  Virgilii." 

No.  239,  insert  "  MS."  before  "sermon,"  and  for  "  175,"  read,  "  perhaps 
150." 

No.  321,  for  "  Pateen  "  read  "  Patten." 

No.  333,  for  "Candle"  read  "Caudle." 

No.  361,  for  "  1855,"  read,  "  1845." 

No.  387,  for  "China  Card  Dish"  read  "Wedgwood  Pickle  Dish." 

Nos.  425-431,  for  "  Hoadley  "  read  "  Hoadly. " 

No.  432,  for  "State"  read  "Stone." 

No.  456,  for  "  Fodsic"  read  "  Fosdic." 

No.  486,  for  "  Horace  "  read  "  Horas." 

No.  500,  for  "  ribbon.     Owned  "  read  "  ribbon  owned." 

Before  No.  503,  for  "  Rev.  Edwin  Jessup  of  North  Guilford,"  read  "Rev. 
Emerson  Jessup  of  West  Haven." 

No.  504,  for  "  Praises  "  read  "  Praise." 

Nos.  513-15,  for  "Flower"  read  "  Fowler." 

No.  784^  erase  "  cloak." 

No.  811,  for  "  Portrait"  read  "  Picture." 

No.  827,  for  "  L  "  read  "  J."' 


2013218 


CELEBRATION   OF  THE 

Two  HUNDRED  AND  FIFTIETH  ANNIVERSARY 

OF   THE 

SETTLEMENT    OE    GUILFORD,    CONN., 

BY    THE 

TOWNS  OF  GUILFORD  AND  MADISON. 


The  propriety  of  commemorating  the  establishment,  in 
1639,  of  the  Plantation  of  Menunkatuck  (now  represented  by 
the  towns  of  Guilford  and  Madison),  had  been  privately  dis- 
cussed long  before  public  and  general  action  was  necessary. 
Some  very  useful  preparatory  work  was  done  in  Guilford  dur- 
ing the  winter  of  1888  and  1889,  by  the  "  Halleck  Circle,"  an 
association  composed  chiefly  of  young  people.  The  first  for- 
mal step,  taken  on  the  motion  of  Rev.  Edmund  M.  Vittum, 
then  pastor  of  the  First  (or  North)  Congregational  church,  is 
recorded  in  the  following  official  document : 

"  Voted,  That  the  Selectmen  be  empowered  to  appoint  a 
committee  of  twelve  to  arrange  for  a  suitable  celebration  of 
the  Two  Hundred  and  Fiftieth  Anniversary  of  the  settlement 
of  the  town  of  Guilford." 

The  above  vote  was  passed  at  the  annual  Town  Meeting, 
held  October  i,  1888.  CHAS.  H.  POST,  Town  Clerk. 

The  Selectmen  (consisting  of  Messrs.  Henry  E.  Parmelee, 
Henry  R.  Spencer  and  Edwin  W.  Bartlett),  at  the  monthly 
meeting  held  in  November,  1888,  discharged  the  duty  thus  en- 
trusted to  them.  The  names  of  the  Committee  of  Arrange- 
ments will  be  found  in  their  proper  place.  One  of  its  original 


members,  Mr.  S.  B.  Chittenden,  Jr.  (representing,  with  Dr- 
Steiner,  the  summer  residents  having  permanent  interests  in 
the  town),  found  it  impossible  to  serve.  He  resigned  January 
17,  1889,  and  Rev.  James  J.  Smith,  pastor  of  St.  George's 
church,  was  appointed  by  the  Selectmen  to  fill  the  vacancy. 
The  Committee  held  its  first  meeting  at  the  house  of  Dr. 
Alvan  Talcott,  on  Friday,  December  21,  1888.  The  two  non- 
resident members  reported  by  letter,  and  of  the  remaining 
ten  members,  nine  were  present.  Capt.  Charles  Griswold  was 
chosen  Secretary,  and  served  until  his  appointment  as  Bank 
Commissioner  compelled  him  to  offer  his  resignation,  August 
7,  1889.  Mr.  Samuel  H.  Chittenden,  of  East  River,  Secretary 
of  the  Madison  Committee  of  Arrangements,  thenceforth 
acted  as  Secretary  of  the  Joint  Committee. 

At  the  first  meeting  above-mentioned  the  date  of  the  cele- 
bration was  fixed,  provisionally,  on  the  days  finally  selected, 
Sunday,  Monday  and  Tuesday,  September  8,  g  and  10.  The 
only  date  preserved,  relating  to  the  time  of  settlement,  is  that 
of  the  Indian  deed  for  the  territory.  This  document  was 
signed  September  29,  1639,  °ld  style,  corresponding  to  Octo- 
ber 9,  new  style.  But  it  describes  the  purchasers  as  "  plant- 
ers of  Menunkatuck,"  and  thus  makes  it  probable  that  some 
of  them  were  residents  here,  in  temporary  dwellings,  at  least 
as  early  as  September.  The  exact  date  not  being  ascertaina- 
ble,  the  one  chosen  was  preferred  as  the  time  of  the  full 
moon. 

Hon.  Simeon  B.  Chittenden,  of  Brooklyn,  a  native  of  Guil- 
ford,  and  a  summer  resident,  was  elected  President  of  the  Day. 
His  serious  illness,  soon  to  terminate  fatally,  made  his  accept- 
ance impossible,  and  at  a  later  meeting  Ellsworth  Eliot,  M.D., 
of  New  York,  also  a  native  of  Guilford,  was  chosen. 

At  the  same  meeting  it  was  voted  to  ask  the  Selectmen  to 
inform  the  Selectmen  of  Madison  of  the  action  taken  in  Guil- 
ford, and  to  request  the  co-operation  of  that  town.  The  ap- 
pointment of  sub-committees  was  also  begun,  most  of  the 
chairmen  being  taken  from  the  Committee  of  Arrangements, 
in  order  to  make  communication  with  that  body  easier,  and  to 
ensure  unity  of  action.  Vacancies  were  left  in  each  sub-corn- 


mittee  to  be  filled  by  residents  of  Madison,  and  the  comple- 
tion of  the  larger  ones  was  entrusted  to  the  respective  chair- 
men, as  best  qualified  to  select  their  own  assistants. 

At  the  second  meeting  of  the  Committee  of  Arrangements, 
held  at  Dr.  Talcott's,  January  18,  1889,  some  business  was 
transacted  but  it  was  thought  best  to  postpone  important 
action  until  the  co-operation  of  Madison  should  have  been 
secured. 

Madison  held  her  first  meeting  March  25,  and  appointed 
committees  to  co-operate  with  those  of  Guilford,  and  after  that 
the  work  went  smoothly  on,  both  towns  acting  in  unison.  A 
circular  was  issued  on  the  power  of  both  towns  in  April 
giving  the  order  of  exercises  so  far  as  it  was  then  possible  to 
make  it  out. 

Guilford  by  a  special  town  meeting,  held  August  10,  ap- 
propriated $1,000  for  the  necessary  expenses  of  the  celebra- 
tion. The  permission  of  the  Legislature  was  necessary  to 
ratify  this  measure  and  it  was  obtained  through  its  Repre- 
sentatives, Mr.  Henry  E.  Parmelee  and  Mr.  George  S.  Davis. 
It  will  interest  the  historical  student  to  observe  the  political 
change  by  which  what  was  practically  an  independent  com- 
monwealth in  1639  has  now  lost  the  power  of  appropriating 
money  even  to  celebrate  its  own  birthday. 

The  Sub-Committee  on  Exercises  held  three  meetings,  at  all 
of  which  every  member  was  present.  Most  of  the  appoint- 
ments were  made  by  the  full  committee,  but  the  Chairman  and 
Miss  Foote  were  given  some  discretionary  power  as  to  alter- 
native appointments.  The  programme,  as  finally  approved  by 
the  Committee  at  its  last  meeting  (held  August  27),  was  car- 
ried out  in  nearly  every  particular. 

In  the  selection  of  writers  and  speakers  the  primary  consid- 
eration was  that  of  nativity  or  ancestry.  It  was  assumed  that 
among  those  thus  connected  with  Guilford  or  Madison  there 
would  be  no  difficulty  in  finding  persons  well  qualified  for  the 
various  tasks  to  be  performed,  while  the  towns  had  no  equally 
strong  claim  upon  the  services  of  any  but  natives  or  their  de- 
scendants. It  was  felt,  however,  that  the  duty  of  giving  the 


6 

Ecclesiastical  History  of  Madison  could  be  entrusted  to  no 
one  with  such  propriety  as  Mr.  Gallup,  the  pastor  for  nearly  a 
quarter  of  a  century  of  the  oldest  Church  in  that  town,  and 
that  the  reading  of  extracts  from  Halleck's  "Connecticut" 
would  be  better  done  by  Dr.  Steiner  than  anyone  else.  Mrs. 
Steiner  was  the  daughter  of  Mr.  Ralph  D.  Smith,  the  Histo- 
rian of  Guilford,  and  their  son,  Bernard  Steiner,  gave  one  of  the 
Historical  Addresses. 

There  was  no  thought  of  attempting  to  secure  within  the 
limits  of  time  to  which  such  a  programme  must  be  confined 
an  adequate  exhibition  of  the  collective  life  of  these  communi- 
ties for  two  centuries  and  a  half.  Nor  was  it  felt  that  we  could 
reasonably  ask  busy  men,  generally  not.  residents,  to  under- 
take the  laborious  task  of  minute  investigation,  though  some 
work  of  this  nature  was  done,  and  its  results  appear  in  these 
pages.  Speakers  were  invited  to  dwell  chiefly  on  the  points 
which  interested  them  most,  in  the  belief  that  by  this  method 
that  which  has  the  greatest  interest  for  the  largest  number 
would  be  likely  to  receive  some  attention.  And  as  we  were  to 
celebrate  the  settlement  of  the  original  town,  it  was  the  period 
of  settlement  and  the  lives  of  the  Founders  in  which  interest 
centered.  Events,  institutions,  families  and  individuals  be- 
came, for  this  occasion,  objects  of  more  or  less  consideration 
in  virtue  not  so  much  of  their  intrinsic  importance  as  of  their 
relation  to  the  earliest  Colonial  times.  Some  notable  events, 
like  the  Civil  War,  and  some  distinguished  men,  like  Fitz- 
Greene  Halleck,  belonging  to  later  periods,  necessarily  had  a 
prominent  place.  But  very  much  which  historians  of  Guil- 
ford and  Madison  would  be  obliged  to  bring  into  the  fore- 
ground was  thrown  into  the  background  or  lost  sight  of  alto- 
gether. We  were  occupied  first,  and  chiefly,  with  Guilford, 
the  ancient  Guilford,  which  covered  the  whole  territory  and 
knew  neither  political  or  ecclesiastical  divisions.  We  wanted 
to  see  Henry  Whitfield;  to  stand  face  to  face  with  him  and 
his  companions,  and  observe  how  they  looked,  and  spoke,  and 
acted.  The  influence  of  this  effort  to  reproduce  our  Primitive 
Age  and  the  generation  nearest  to  it  was  noticeable  every- 
where; in  the  marking  of  houses  simply  because  they  had 


stood  for  a  century  or  more,  to  the  entire  neglect  of  more  at- 
tractive, and  convenient,  and  desirable  residences  which  might 
have  been  built  beside  them;  in  the  marking  of  the  home  lots 
of  the  settlers,  in  utter  disregard  of  existing  line  fences  and 
titles;  in  the  antique  costumes  at  the  Reception;  in  the  most 
striking  and  picturesque  features  of  the  Procession;  in  the 
exhibition  of  relics;  in  the  colonial  salute  of  six  guns  at  sun- 
rise on  Tuesday,  for  the  six  towns  of  the  New  Haven  colony, 
and  the  national  salute,  not  of  forty-two  guns  but  of  thirteen, 
at  sunset,  for  the  thirteen  states  which  formed  the  nation  a 
hundred  years  ago. 

Such  a  study  of  the  past  helps  us  to  understand  the  pres- 
ent and  to  prepare  for  the  future.  As  thoughtful  persons 
listened,  for  example,  to  the  three  papers  read  on  Tuesday 
morning  they  could  hardly  fail  to  receive  a  more  vivid  impres- 
sion of  a  continuous  life  uniting  successive  generations.  The 
men  and  women  who  made  such  sacrifices  for  their  county 
in  1 86 1  and  the  years  which  followed  seemed  like  a  re-embod- 
iment of  the  strong  souls  to  whom  the  harder  sacrifice  of 
country  itself  was  possible  in  1639.  The  brief  glimpses  of 
the  long  intervening  period,  given  in  the  second  paper,  showed 
the  same  moral  and  spiritual  forces  to  have  been  dominant 
throughout.  And  the  three  chapters  of  the  story,  showing 
the  best  elements  of  character  to  have  been  preserved  almost 
unimpaired  for  more  than  two  hundred  years,  proved  the  pos- 
sibility and  strengthened  the  obligation  of  transmitting  this 
inheritance  to  the  generations  which  will  follow. 

The  Connecticut  Historical  Society  sent  the  following  rep- 
resentatives, of  whom  all  but  Dr.  Pynchon  (detained  at  the 
last  moment)  were  present:  Henry  Barnard,  L.L.  D.,  Charles 
J.  Hoadly,  L  L.  D.,  Rev.  Thomas  R.  Pynchon,  D.  D.,  Prof. 
Samuel  Hart,  D.  D.,  and  Mr.  Frank  F.  Starr. 

The  New  London  County  Historical  Society  sent  Mr.  John 
M  Ginley  as  its  representative. 

Members  of  the  New  Haven  Colony  Historical  Society  and 
of  the  American  Historical  Association  were  also  in  attend- 
ance. 

Professors  George  P.  Fisher,  D.  D,  Franklin  B.  Dexter  and 


Thomas  R.  Lounsbury  of  Yale  University,  Professors  Samuel 
Hart,  D.D.,  and  Charles  Frederick  Johnson  of  Trinity  College 
were  present,  and  a  message  of  regret  was  received  from  Wes- 
leyan  University. 

Hon.  Joseph  R.  Hawley,  United  Sates  Senate;  Hon.  Sam- 
uel C.  Merwin,  Lieutenant  Governor  (representing  the  Gov- 
ernor); Hon.  W.  F.  Willcox,  Member  of  Congress  for  this 
district,  and  Hon.  Andrew  C.  Bradley,  Associate  Justice  of  the 
Supreme  Court  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  represented  dif- 
ferent departments  of  the  National  and  State  Governments. 

The  Selectmen  of  New  Haven  were  present  in  a  body. 

The  following  resolutions  were  adopted  at  the  meeting  of 
the  Committee  held  September  19,  1889: 

WHEREAS,  The  Rev.  Lorenzo  T.  Bennett,  D.  D.,  member 
of  the  Committee  on  Invitations,  and  most  thoughtful  and 
active  in  the  performance  of  his  duties  in  that  capacity,  until 
the  work  of  his  committee  was  substantially  finished,  died 
very  suddenly,  less  than  a  week  before  the  celebration  began, 
without  enjoying  the  unselfish  pleasure  he  would  have  felt  in 
the  result  of  his  work,  and  the  removal  of  his  anxieties, 

Resolved,  That  we  hereby  record  our  thankfulness  for  the 
services  which  Dr.  Bennett  rendered  in  our  recent  undertak- 
ing, services  the  more  noteworthy,  for  his  having  nearly 
reached  the  age  of  eighty-four,  and  also  our  sorrow,  shared  by 
all  his  townsmen  and  all  who  knew  him,  at  a  death  which,  in 
spite  of  his  more  than  four  score  years,  seemed  untimely. 

Resolved,  That  we  hereby  offer  to  his  family  the  assurance 
of  our  sympathy  in  their  grief,  as  well  as  in  the  abundance  of 
their  comfort. 


WHEREAS,  Our  associate,  Mr.  George  W.  Bunnell,  a  member 
of  the  Committee  of  Arrangements  for  Madison,  after  having 
by  his  presence  at  our  consultations,  and  his  judicious  sug- 
gestions when  present,  shown  both  his  hearty  interest  in  the 
celebration,  and  his  ability  to  contribute  to  its  success,  was 
suddenly  removed  by  death, 

Resolved,  That  we  hereby  express  our  sympathy  with  his 
family,  and  our  happiness  in  the  assurance  that  they  find 
comfort  in  the  remembrance  of  his  useful  Christian  life. 


It  was  also 

Resolved,  That  the  hearty  thanks  of  the  two  committees  are 
hereby  tendered,  in  behalf  of  the  people  of  Guilford  and  Mad 
ison,  to  the  speakers  who  contributed  so  effectively  to  the  suc- 
cess of  the  celebration,  and  to  those  who  presided  on  the  suc- 
cessive days,  recognizing  with  particular  pleasure  their  willing 
response  to  the  claim  upon  their  services,  made  in  the  name 
of  the  original  Guilford. 

Resolved,  That  we  warmly  acknowledge  the  kindness  of 
those  who  added  to  the  enjoyment  of  the  late  celebration  by 
giving  us  the  benefit  of  rare  musical  gifts  and  culture. 

Resolved,  That  sincere  thanks  are  due  to  the  First  Ecclesi- 
astical Society,  in  which  the  religious  organization  of  the 
Founders  is  perpetuated,  for  the  use  of  their  church  edifice 
during  the  three  days  of  the  celebration. 

Resolved,  That  the  hearty  co-operation  of  the  people  of  the 
two  towns,  as  well  as  of  others  connected  with  them  by  various 
ties,  in  untiring  labors,  and  in  contributions  to  the  tables,  to 
the  exhibition  of  relics,  to  the  procession,  to  the  decorations, 
to  the  music, "in  money  or  other  ways,  forms  one  of  the  pleas- 
antest  features  of  the  celebration,  and  was  the  chief  element 
in  its  success. 


COMMITTEES. 


GENERAL  COMMITTEE. 

REV.  W.  G.  ANDREWS,   D.  D.,  Chairman. 
SAMUEL  H.  CHITTENDEN,  Sec'y.  LEWIS  R.  ELLIOT,  Treasurer. 

Guilford.  Madison. 

REV.  W.  G.  ANDREWS,  D.  D.,  N.  T.  BUSHNELL, 

CHARLES  GRISWOLD,  S.  H.   CHITTENDEN, 

REV.  GEO.  W.  BANKS,  H.  B.  WILCOX, 

REV.  J.  J.  SMITH,  JOHN  H.  MEIGS, 

ALVAN  TALCOTT,  M.  D.,  B.  B.  MUNGER, 

LEWIS  H.  STEINER,  M.  D.,  JASON  DUDLEY, 

LEWIS  R.  ELLIOT,  M.  A.  WILCOX, 

R.  L.  FOWLER,  W.  D.  WHEDON, 

S.  W.  LANDON,  ANSON  NORTON, 

E.  WALTER  LEETE,  GEO.  W.  BUNNELL, 

EDWIN  W.  BARTLETT,  JAMES  R.  DOWD, 

BALDWIN  C.  DUDLEY.  FRANK  C.  BARTLETT, 

ALFRED  B.  SCRANTON. 


1 1 


SPECIAL  COMMITTEES. 


EXERCISES. 

REV.  W.  G.  ANDREWS,  D.  D.,  Chairman. 

Guilford.  Madison. 

Miss  KATE  FOOTE,  N.  T.  BUSHNELL, 


JOHN  R.   ROSSITER, 


REV.  JAS.  A.  GALLUP. 


FINANCE. 

LEWIS  R.   ELLIOT,  Chairman. 


Guilford. 
JOHN  BEATTIE. 


Madison. 

I.  LEE  SCRANTON, 
N.  T.  BUSHNELL. 


INVITATIONS. 

REV.  GEO.  W.   BANKS,  Chairman. 

Guilford.  Madison. 

REV.  L.  T.  BENNETT,  D.  D.  SAMUEL  H.  CHITTENDEN. 


HOSPITALITY. 


Guilford. 

JOHN  W.  NORTON, 
MRS.  THOMAS  H.  LANDON, 
JEROME  COAN, 
MRS.  R.  L.  FOWLER, 
MRS.  JOHN  W.  NORTON, 
MR.  &  MRS.  CHARLES  HALL, 
"        "        WALTER  W.  WILCOX, 


R.  L.   FOWLER,  Chairman. 

Madison. 
JUDGE  H.  B.  WILCOX, 


JOHN  H.  MEIGS, 
ANSON  NORTON, 
J.  MYRON  HULL, 
HORACE  B.  HUNTER, 
S.  ARTHUR  SCRANTON, 
RALPH  J.  BUELL, 


12 


Gitilford. 
MR.  &  MRS.  GEORGE  CARTER, 

FRANCIS  DUDLEY, 
"        "         DANIEL  R.  SPENCER, 

HENRY  CHITTENDEN, 
"         "        RICHARD  WILCOX, 
"         "        GEORGE  W.  SEWARD, 
"         "         RALPH  PARKER, 

JOEL  GRISWOLD, 
"  "  RICHARD  LEETE, 
"  "  ARTHUR  FOWLER, 

GEORGE  B.  SPENCER, 
"  "  OWEN  CUNNINGHAM, 
"  "  FRANK  BEATTIE, 

"         RICHARD  BARTLETT, 
"         "         JEROME  COAN, 

HENRY  GRISWOLD, 
"  "  ERASTUS  DUDLEY, 
"  "  LUZERNE  ROSSITER, 

EDWIN  BARTLETT, 
"         ''        FAYETTE  ROSSITER, 
"         "        WILKERT  POTTER. 


Madison. 

JAMES  H.  BRADLEY, 

TIMOTHY  A.  DOWD, 

WEBSTER  D.  WHEDON, 

GEO.  M.  CRAMPTON, 

GEO.  B.  MUNGER, 

PAYSON  W.  TUCKER, 

JOEL  M.  HILL, 

WASHINGTON  BRISTOL, 

JAS.  R.  Down, 

NEHEMIAH  BURR, 

JOSEPH  M.  BRANNAN, 

MRS.  F.  T.  DOWD, 

"     WEBSTER  D.  WHEDON, 
"     O.  D.  REDFIELD, 
"    E.  G.  NORTON, 
"     EDWARD  E.  MEIGS, 

Miss  KATHERINE  SCRANTON, 
"    LIZZIE  SCRANTON, 
"     MAMIE  MEIGS, 
"     A.  N.  JASMINE, 
"    JESSIE  WILCOX, 
"     MABEL  MUNGER, 
"     LOTTIE  MEIGS, 
"     MAMIE  SCRANTON, 
"     BELLE  WATROUS, 
'    CARRIE  LEETE, 
"    CLARA  DOWD. 


Guilford. 
H.  E.  FOWLER, 
E.  R.  MOODY, 
CLIFFORD  BISHOP, 
REV.  S.  G.  NEAL. 


MUSIC. 

B.  C.  DUDLEY,  Chairman. 


Madison. 
E.  B.  FIELD, 
JOEL  M.  HILL, 
ALMON  MINER, 
ALFRED  B.  SCRANTON. 


13 
DECORATIONS. 

S.  W.  LAN  DON,  Chairman. 

Guilford.  Madison. 

H.  S.  WKDMORE,  DANIEL  H.  SCRANTON, 

MRS.  SCOTT  BRYAN,  GEORGE  B.  MUNGER, 

Miss  KATE  B.  DUDLEY,  J.  MYRON  HULL, 

SAMUEL  G.  HUBBARD,  WILSON  B.  COE, 

Miss  MAMIE  DAILEY,  Miss  FANNIE  FISKE. 

CLIFFORD  F.  BISHOP, 
HOWARD  WILLIAMS, 
MRS.  WM.  H.  ELLIOT, 
E.  M.  LEETE, 
S.  A.  RICHARDS. 


PRINTING. 

CHARLES  GRISWOLD,  Chairman. 

Guilford.  Madison. 

J.  T.  WILDMAN,  JAMES  R.  MEIGS. 


PROCESSION. 

WM.   H.  LEE,  Chairman. 

Guilford.  Madison. 

HART  LANDON,  J.  SAMUEL  SCRANTON. 


RELICS. 

E.  WALTER  LEETE,  Chairman. 

Guilfor  d.  Madison . 

MRS.  JAMES  M.  HUNT,  Miss  FRANCES  G.  BUSHNELL, 

"     LOTTIE  FOOTE  GEORGE  MUNGER, 

"     GEORGE  S.  DAVIS,  JASON  DUDLEY, 

Miss  MARY  H.  SHEPARD,  HENRY  E.  STONE, 

"     ELIZABETH  M.  ELLIOT,  WEBSTER  D.  WHEDON, 

"     HATTIE  SEWARD,  MRS.  ANSON  NORTON. 

MRS.  EDGAR  F.  ROSSITER, 

Miss  AMY  F.  BARTLETT, 

Miss  ANNETTE  A.  FOWLER, "»    Com.  on 

BERNARD  C,  STEINER,  )  Catalogue. 


14 
TRANSPORTATION. 

H.   S.  WEDMORE,    Chairman. 

Guilfon/.  Madison. 

C.  H.  POST  S.  H.  CHITTENDEN. 

S.  A.  RICHARDS. 

RECEPTION. 

H.  W.  SPENCER,  Chairman. 
FRANK  KNOWLES, 
GEORGE  S.  DAVIS. 


HISTORIC  SITES. 

HENRY   R.   SPENCER,  Chairman. 
Miss  MARY  G.  ROBINSON, 

"     ELIZABETH  M.  LEETE, 
WALLACE  D.  NORTON, 
BERNARD  C.  STEINER. 


TICKETS. 

GEORGE  B.   SPENCER,  Chairman. 

W.  A.  BENTON, 
GEORGE  L.  GRISWOLD. 


INFORMATION. 

JOHN  W.   BANKS,   Chairman. 

Guilford.  Madison. 

GEORGE  LANDON,  S.  R.  CRAMPTON, 

WALTER  STEINER,  Jos.  S.  SCRANTON, 

ERNEST  FOWLER,  C.  H.  WHEDON. 
HOWARD  KINGSBURY, 
THOS    H.  LANDON,  JR. 

PUBLICATION. 

SAMUEL  H.  CHITTENDEN,  Chairman. 
Miss  KATE  FOOTE. 
H.  S.  WEDMORE. 


ORDER    OF    EXERCISES. 


SUNDAY,    SEPTEMBER   8th. 

IO:3O    A.    M. 

Congregational  Church,  Madison  (once  East  Guilford). 

MUSIC— Organ  Voluntary  .  .  .  Miss  M.  E.  Fiela 

DOXOLOGY  ....  Choir  and  Congregation 

INVOCATION  ....  Rev.  J.  A.  Gallup 

HYMN  93 — "Songs  of  the  Sanctuary"  .  Choir  and  Congregation 

READING  OF  THE  SCRIPTURES— From  a  Bible  300  years  old,  being 
a  version  by  Theodore  Beza,  the  friend   and   successor  of    Calvin;  now 
owned  by  Samuel  S.  Meigs,  an  heirloom  through  the  Stone  family. 
SOLO— "I  Know  That  My  Redeemer  Liveth"  .  Airs.   Whitney 

PRAYER          .  .  .  Rev.  A.  C.  Dennison,  Middlefield,  Conn. 

HYMN   1309. 

MORNING  OFFERING— Offertory  Duet,  sung  by 

Airs.    Whitney  and  Mr.  Bushnell 

ORIGINAL  POEM— "The  Puritan  Sabbath" 

By  George  A.   Wilcox,  Detroit,  Mich. 

SERMON— "Ecclesiastical  History  of  East  Guilford" 

Rev.  J.  A.  Gallup,  Pastor 

SOLO  .  .  ...  .  .  Air.  Bushnell 

HYMN   1312. 

BENEDICTION  .  .  .  .  Rev.  B.  G.  Northrup 

Singing  led  by  Church  Choir,  assisted  by  Mr.  Hunt,  Cornetist;  Mrs. 
F.  P.  Whitney  of  Boston,  Soprano,  and  Mr.  C.  J.  Bushnell  of  New  York, 
Baritone. 

2:30   P.    M. 

First  Congregational  Church,  Guilford. 

VOLUNTARY— Offertoire  in  F  minor,  Batiste  .  '   E.  Moody 

INVOCATION  .....  Rev.  Air.  Mclntosh 

SOLO — "Jesus  Lover  of  My  Soul"  .  .  .  Mrs.   Whitney 

RESPONSIVE  READING— Psalm  cxlvi.,  (Nos.  39  and  40). 


i6 

SOLO— "O,  Rest  in  the  Lord"  .  .  .  C.  J.   Bushnell 

READING  OF  THE  SCRIPTURES— Deuteronomy  viii. 

DUET  .  .  .  .  Mrs.   Whitney  and  Mr.  Bushnell 

PRAYER  .....  Rev.  James  A.  Gallup 

HYMN  935— (Book  of  Praise.) 

HISTORICAL  SERMON     .     Prepared  by  Rev.  C.  L.  Kitchell,  New  Haven 

SOLO— "But  the  Lord  is  Mindful  of  His  Own"  .  Mrs.   Whitney 

PRAYER  .  .  .  .  .  Rev.  George    W.  Banks 

HYMN   392. 

BENEDICTION. 

Singing    by   Choirs   of    Guilford,  assisted   by    Mrs.  Whitney   and    Mr. 
Bushnell. 

7:30    P.    M. 

First  Church,  Guilford. 

VOLUNTARY — Communion  in  E  minor,  Batiste  .  E.  Moody 

PRAYER  ......  Rev.  E.  C.  Starr 

HYMN  949 — (Book  of  Praise;  tune,  Burlington.) 
ADDRESS — "Education  in  Guilford  and  Madison" 

Rev.  James  L.    Willard,  D.  D.,   Westville,  Conn. 
ADD RESS — "Congregational  Ministers" 

Rev.  Charles  E.  Stowe,  Hartford,  Conn. 
HYMN   723  .....  Choir  and  Congregation 

ADDRESS— "Other  Ministers" 

Rev.  Richard  L.    Chittenden,  Paradise,  Penn. 

PRAYERS  ......          Rev.   S.   G.  Neal 

BENEDICTION. 

Rev.  E.  C.  Starr  of  Cornwall,  Conn.,  presided. 


MONDAY,  SEPTEMBER    Qth. 

3:30    P.    M. 

First  Church,  Guilford. 
MUSIC. 

POEM — "A  Legend  of  Sachem's  Head" 

George   A.    Wilcox,  Detroit,  Mich. 

PAPER— "On  "Fitz  Greene  Halleck" 

Prof.   Charles  Frederick  Johnson,  Trinity  College,  Hartford 

MUSIC — "America." 


17 

EXTRACTS  FROM  HALLECK'S  "CONNECTICUT"— Read  by 

Hon.  Lewis  II.    Steiner,   M.   D.,   Baltimore,   Md. 
PAPER — "Guilford  and  Madison  in  Literature" 

Henry  P.  Robinson,  Guilford 
MUSIC. 
Joel  Benton  of  Amcnia,  N.  Y.,  presided. 

7    TO    IO   P.    M. 

RECEPTION— By  the  residents  of  the  towns  to  their  guests,  at  the  house 
of  Mr.  John  Hubbard  and  Miss  Hubbard,  Broad  St. 


TUESDAY,    SEPTEMBER    loth. 

SUNRISE. 
Colonial  Salute  of  six  guns,  with  ringing  of  bells. 

8    A.    M. 
Procession  forms  at  the  Green  (Guilford  Division). 

9:30   A.    M. 

Guilford  and  Madison  Divisions  begin  line  of  march  from  corner  of   Bos- 
ton and  Union  Streets. 

II    A.    M. 

Fiist  Church,  Guilford. 
MUSIC. 
HISTORICAL  ADDRESS— "Guilford  from  1639  to  1665" 

Prof.   Samuel  Hart,  D.  D.,    Trinity  College,  Hartford 

PAPER — "Guilford  and  Madison  from  1665  to  1861  " 

Bernard  C.    Steiner,   Baltimore,   Aid. 
PAPER — "Guilford  and  Madison  in  the  Civil  War;  Town  Action" 

Miss  Kate  foote,   Guilford 

I2:3O    P.    M. 
Dinner. 

2    P.    M. 

MUSIC— "Red,  White  and  Blue"  ....  Band 

SHORT  SPEECHES— £>  Sidney   W.  Leete  of  Guilford,  Ellsworth  Eliot. 

M.  D.,  of  New  York,  Gen.  Joseph  R.  Hawley,  United  States  Senate;  Joel 


i8 

Bcnlon,  Amcnia,  AT.  Y.;  lion.  S.  E.  Merwin,  Lieutenant  Governor; 
Judge  Andrew  C.  Bradley  of  Washington,  D.  C.,  Henry  A.  Barnard, 
I.L.  D.,  of  Hartford. 

3:30    P.    M. 
First  Church,  Guilford. 

MUSIC— "Eia  Mater,"  from  D'Vorak's  "Stabat  Mater." 
ADDRESS— "Whitfield  and  Higginson" 

Col.    Thomas    Wentworth  Higginson,  Cambridge,  Muss. 

MUSIC— "Jerusalem,  the  Golden"  .  Band 

ADDRESS— "Other  Founders" 

Prof.    William  R.  Dudley,   Cornell  University,  Ithaca,   N.    Y. 
MUSIC— "America." 
ADDRESS— "Distinguished  Natives  of  Guilford  and  Madison" 

Rev.  John  E.    Todd,  D.  D.,  New  Haven 

MUSIC— "Magnolia"  .  .  .  Band 

SUNSET. 
National  Salute  of  thirteen  guns,  with  ringing  of  bells. 

Instrumental    Music   on   Tuesday    by    Colt's    First    Regiment    Band    of 

Hartford. 

Ellsworth  Eliot,  M.  D.,  of  New  York  will  preside  on  Tuesday. 


The  exercises  of  the  Two  Hundred  and  Fiftieth  Anniver- 
sary of  the  Settlement  of  Guilford  began  on  Sunday  morning, 
September  8,  1889,  by  public  services  in  the  Congregational 
church  in  Madison,  formerly  East  Guilford.  Many  from 
Guilford  and  North  Madison,  and  many  ex-resident  descend- 
ants, united  with  the  people  of  Madison  in  this  service,  com- 
pletely filling  the  spacious  meeting  house  with  a  deeply 
interested  audience.  The  church  was  approprately  decorated 
with  mottoes  and  flowers.  Among  the  former  was  an  Eccle- 
siastical Genealogical  Tree,  in  the  pulpit  recess,  showing  the 
Guilford  First  Church  Trunk,  and  all  the  branches  which  have 
sprung  therefrom,  giving  their  names,  dates  and  order  of  forma- 
tion. The  painting  was  six  feet  by  eight.  The  design  was  ad- 
mirably executed  by  Mrs.  Augusta  Dowd,  as  was  also  the  motto 
on  the  face  of  the  side  gallery,  consisting  of  the  Coat  ot  Arms 
of  Connecticut,  bordered  with  real  grape  vines,  with  purple 


19 

clusters,  and  having  its  appropriate  inscription  on  a  ribbon 
gracefully  draped  underneath,  "  Qni  Transtulit  Sustinet" 
Opposite  to  this  was  the  motto,  WE  ARE  THE  HEIRS  OF 
ALL  THE  AGES.  Across  the  pulpit  in  letters  of  gold, 
AULD  LANG  SYNE,  and  across  the  choir  gallery,  We 
Praise  Thee,  O  God !  In  the  vestibule  over  the  door  was  the 
church's  WELCOME  to  friends  and  strangers.  On  the  right 
hand  of  the  pulpit,  in  a  panel  upon  the  wall,  were  the  names 
of  all  the  pastors  of  the  East  Guilford  church  from  its  founda- 
tion in  1707,  with  the  dates  of  service.  On  the  left,  were  the 
names  of  all  the  deacons  of  the  church.  Flowers  in  profusion, 
tastefully  arranged  by  the  ladies,  completed  the  decorations. 


HISTORICAL  DISCOURSE 


REV.  JAS.  A.   GALLUP. 


"  For  every  house  is  builded  by  some  man,  but  he  that  built  all  things  is 
God." — HEBREWS  in  :  4. 

You  have  all  doubtless  seen  footprints  in  the  solid  rock- 
Geology  teaches  us  that  that  rock  was  once  a  soft  and  yield- 
ing substance,  and  that  some  bird  or  beast,  long  since  dead, 
whose  very  species  may  be  extinct,  stepped  upon  that  rock  in 
its  plastic  state,  and  the  impress  of  that  foot  was  left  graven 
on  the  rock  forever. 

After  the  lapse  of  ages,  science  traces  out  the  form  and 
proportions  of  the  ancient  beast  or  bird,  by  these  simple  in- 
delible footprints.  As  of  the  rock  and  its  footprints,  so  of 
society  and  its  institutions.  These  bear  certain  marks,  which 
are  the  footprints  of  a  former  age.  By  the  study  of  these 
historic  marks,  we  come  to  know  the  form,  and  proportions  of 
the  men,  who  impressed  themselves  upon  that  early  and  for- 
mative period. 

The  men  who  wrought  upon  that  plastic  age  are  dead,  but 
their  sturdiness  of  character,  for  wisdom,  moral  uprightness, 
and  a  far-seeing  and  benevolent  regard  for  the  future,  still 
lives,  in  the  institutions  they  planted. 

By  a  careful  study  of  these  footprints,  we  come  to  know  the 
men,  whom  we  honor  as  the  fathers  and  founders  of  our  cher- 
ished institutions,  in  Church  and  State.  In  the  nobility  of 
their  spirit  and  the  grandeur  of  their  work,  they  still  live 
among  us. 

Generations  come  and  go  ;  the  centuries  open  and  close  ; 
but  these  institutions,  with  their  rock  foundations  of  personal 
liberty  and  personal  responsibility,  go  on  forever. 


21 

Such  builders  are  immortal  in  their  works,  which  follow 
them,  and  by  which,  they  being  dead,  yet  speak.  They 
stamped  their  own  lineaments  upon  the  age  in  which  they 
lived,  and  each  succeeding  age  transmits  the  life  it  has  re- 
ceived, re-enforced  by  what  itself  has  wrought,  to  its  successor; 
thus  the  fathers  and  the  children  are  bound  together  by 
an  electric  bond  of  sympathetic  life.  "  Every  house  is  builded 
by  some  man."  The  house  is  a  comprehensive  term,  denoting 
not  only  the  building  which  shelters  us,  but  the  people  who 
are  sheltered  by  the  building,  or  the  household,  and  also  the 
institutions  which  nurture  and  develop  life,  in  its  divers  forms 
of  activity  and  enjoyment. 

Architecture,  in  substance  and  type,  runs  through  all  lan- 
guage. It  builds  up  men,  society,  governments  and  institu- 
tions. Our  fathers  were  builders  in  the  broadest  and  most 
multiform  sense.  In  all  their  building,  they  recognize  the 
twofold  agency  of  the  text,  the  human  and  the  Divine. 

"  Every  house  is  builded  by  some  man."  It  didn't  happen; 
it  was  not  produced  by  chance  ;  it  didn't  build  itself,  by  some 
mysterious  and  hidden  law  of  development.  It  was  built  by 
an  agency  from  without,  by  some  man,  who  had  the  genius  to 
plan,  the  will  to  execute,  and  the  energy  to  accomplish  the 
work.  The  wisdom,  design,  skill  and  magnificence  of  the 
house  our  fathers  built,  and  we  inherit,  show  an  intelligent 
cause.  Every  room  in  this  house,  bears  the  marks  of  a  builder. 
Taste,  judgment,  sagacity,  sense  and  sentiment,  are  in  the 
houses  we  build,  as  footprints  in  the  rock. 

To  this  human  agency,  of  brain,  heart,  muscle  and  nerve, 
which  plans,  believes  and  builds,  they  added  a  Divine  Archi- 
tect, who  presides  over  and  directs  all.  They  believed  in  God 
as  the  Director  of  events,  and  the  Guide  of  men  and  their 
actions. 

Our  thoughts  go  back  to-day  to  the  builders  of  two  and  a 
half  centuries  ago,  who  on  these  shores  and  amid  these  wilds, 
built  for  themselves  and  their  posterity,  a  home,  a  school,  a 
store,  a  shop,  a  State,  a  Church. 

We  meet  to-day  under  circumstances  of  peculiar  interest. 
Two  hundred  and  fifty  years  are  no  inconsiderable  part  of  the 
world's  history.  If  we  reckon  this  period,  not  by  the  mathe- 


22 

raatics  of  the  earth's  movements,  but  by  the  movements  of 
events  that  have  transpired  on  the  face  of  the  earth,  we  shall 
find  they  measure  an  important  section  of  the  world's  prog- 
ress, in  civilization,  discovery,  invention,  the  arts,  science, 
education,  statecraft  and  religion.  If  we  confine  the  outlook 
of  these  centuries  to  the  rise  and  progress  of  our  own  coun- 
try, from  the  choice,  sifted  seed,  planted  here  and  there  in  the 
wilderness,  to  the  magnificent  harvests  of  material  wealth, 
political  grandeur,  population,  and  general  prosperity,  which 
fill  the  land,  from  ocean  to  ocean,  with  throbbing  life,  we  shall 
find  abundant  cause  for  exuberant  thanksgiving,  to  the  men 
who  laid  so  well  and  heroically  the  foundations  of  our  many- 
roomed  house,  and  to  the  Divine  Architect  who  inspired  the  men 
to  build  even  wider  and  wiser  than  they  knew,  and  who  superin- 
tended their  work.  A  small  section  of  the  work  of  the  fathers 

i 

in  its  beginning  and  progress,  is  given  us  for  our  study  this 
morning;  and  of  this  section  we  are  to  confine  ourselves 
chiefly  to  the  House  of  God,  or  the  Church,  as  the  early  and 
central  life,  which  gave  form  and  force  to  all  the  rest. 

In  sketching  the  Ecclesiastical  or  Church  History  of  East 
Guilford,  I  am  disposed  to  adopt  the  unusual,  and  it  may  seem 
illogical  course,  of  making  the  last  first  and  the  first  last. 
This  is  the  order  of  life  and  experience.  We  begin  with  our- 
selves, then  go  out  to  others,  and  back  to  our  ancestors.  Ex- 
plorers first  find  the  river  and  then  its  source.  There  are  four 
Churches  in  the  town  of  Madison  (formerly  East  Guilford): 
the  Congregational  and  Methodist  Episcopal  in  the  southern 
part,  the  Congregational  Church  in  North  Madison  (originally 
North  Bristol),  and  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  in  Rock- 
land,  or  Black  Rock  District.  These  Churches  are  all  sup- 
plied with  Pastors  at  present  and  doing  an  honorable  and 
fairly  successful  work.  The  two  Congregational  Churches 
were  organized  during  the  last  Century — one  at  the  beginning 
of  the  Century,  the  other  near  the  middle.  The  Methodist 
Episcopal  Churches  were  organized  the  present  Century — one 
at  the  beginning,  the  other  near  the  middle.  The  life  of  these 
Churches  has  been  continuous,  with  only  such  changes  as 
have  been  due  to  local  circumstances. 

If  I  speak  first  and  chiefly  of  this  church  it  will  be  because 


23 

of  its  greater  antiquity,  and  in  some  sense  greater  prominence 
in  the  early  history  of  this  section  and  because  I  am  more 
familiar  with  its  record.  The  North  Madison  Church  will 
have  a  more  detailed  history,  by  their  pastor,  Rev.  W.  E.  B. 
Moore.  The  pastorates  in  the  M.  E.  Churches  have  gen- 
erally been  so  brief  that  no  adequate  measure  can  be  made 
of  the  men  or  their  work  upon  the  community  at  large.  The 
history  of  this  Church  is  so  unique  that  I  may  group  its  182 
years'  existence  around  its  six  pastors,  who  have  filled  out 
this  period. 

The  first  four  of  these  pastorates  cover  a  period  of  149 
years,  including  the  short  intervals  between,  which  have  usu- 
ally been  but  a  few  months,  in  one  instance  only  over  a  year. 
The  four  pastors  were  ordained  here,  died  in  office  and  were 
buried  in  the  West  Cemetery.  Only  one  of  the  four  lived  to 
be  over  fifty-seven  years  of  age. 

Of  the  remaining  two  pastorates,  that  of  Mr.  Fisk  lacked  a 
little  of  seven  years,  being  cut  short  by  his  death  in  the  army. 
My  own  lacks  one  year  of  a  quarter  of  a  century.  I  came 
to  this  office  in  October,  1865,  from  a  similar  service  of  over 
eleven  years  in  the  neighboring  town  of  Essex.  My  installa- 
tion took  place  November  2,  1865.  Rev.  S.  McCall  preached 
the  Sermon,  Dr.  Badger  gave  the  Charge,  and  Rev.  Elijah 
Baldwin  the  Right  Hand  of  Fellowship.  I  found  here  a 
church  large  in  numbers,  well  instructed  in  Christian  doctrine, 
steadfast  in  faith,  and  zealous  of  good  works.  Its  member- 
ship from  the  first  has  been  made  up  largely  of  those  descend- 
ants of  the  early  settlers,  who  have  grown  up  in  the  parish,  of 
American  stock  and  of  the  true  New  England  spirit. 

The  past  twenty-four  years  have  been  characterized  by  great 
changes  in  the  political  and  religious  world  as  well  as  in  the 
industrial  and  social  life  of  the  people.  It  has  been  the  era 
of  reconstruction  in  our  national  life,  of  extension  of  territory, 
overwhelming  immigration,  great  labor  agitations,  marvelous 
inventions,  and  railway  advancement.  It  has  also  been 
marked  by  a  great  increase  in  the  spirit  of  missions  and  in 
gospel  evangelization.  Unbelief  has  not  been  inactive,  either 
in  its  gross  forms  of  infidelity,  after  the  Thomas  Paine  school, 


24 

or  the  more  subtle  and  refined  forms,  under  the  guise  of  Scien- 
tific Philosophy.  This  insidious  leaven  has  made  itself  felt  in 
our  quiet  community  as  well  as  in  the  cities.  We  have 
endeavored  during  this  period  to  keep  up  the  life  and  growth 
of  our  branch  of  the  Ecclesiastical  tree  to  its  full  proportion 
and  to  carry  forward  the  work  begun  here  by  the  fathers  and 
the  mothers  in  Israel.  This  house  has  been  enlarged,  entirely 
reconstructed  in  the  interior  and  refurnished  throughout.  An 
organ  has  been  supplied  and  a  chapel  built.  All  these  im- 
provements, together  with  more  recent  outlays  in  painting, 
have  been  at  an  expense  of  $19,000.00  or  over,  all  of  which 
has  been  paid,  leaving  no  debt.  We  maintain  the  usual 
Church  services  on  the  Sabbath  and  two  regular  prayer  meet- 
ings during  the  week,  one  under  the  care  of  the  Young  Peo- 
ple's Society  of  Christian  Endeavor,  which  now  numbers  on 
its  roll  about  seventy  members.  Our  Sunday  School  and 
Mission  work  keep  pace  with  the  life  of  the  Church. 

Several  revivals  during  this  period  have  greatly  refreshed 
and  quickened  the  people  of  God,  and  brought  many  into  the 
fold  of  the  Church.  In  1866,  ninety  were  added  to  the 
Church;  in  1871,  twenty-one  were  received;  in  1874,  sixteen; 
in  1876,  thirty-nine;  in  1878,  nine;  in  1879,  six;  in  1882, 
thirty-seven;  in  1885,  fifty-seven.  Others  have  been  received 
in  the  intervening  years,  making  a  total  of  363  received  into 
the  Church  during  this  period.  During  the  same  time,  200 
members  have  died. 

I  have,  during  my  pastorate  here,  united  in  marriage  169 
couples,  and  attended  over  500  funerals. 

We  as  a  town  suffer  greatly, — in  common  with  all  rural 
towns  of  New  England, — from  the  loss  of  our  young  men 
who  go  to  the  cities  and  manufacturing  villages  for  employ- 
ment, leaving  only  the  elderly  people  and  vacant  houses 
behind,  and  as  a  consequence,  a  waning  census  from  decade 
to  decade. 

We  chronicle  as  a  somewhat  new  feature  of  Madison  life, 
the  advent  of  cottages  along  our  splendid  beach,  already  half 
a  hundred  or  more  in  number,  and  each  year  increasing,  and 
destined  to  make  the  town  famous  as  a  seaside  resort.  This, 


25 

and  the  revival  of  ship-building,  are  two  hopeful  signs  in  our 
quiet  life. 

You  would  not  forgive  me  if  I  failed  to  mention  "  Lee's 
Academy,"  established  in  1821,  and  having  on  its  roll  many 
honorable  names  as  teachers  and  pupils.  This  institution, 
remembered  with  interest  by  many,  has  passed  into  the  hands 
of  the  Centre  District,  and  is  undergoing  repairs  to  fit  it  for 
school  purposes.  Its  place  has  been  taken  by  Hand  Academy, 
which  has  been  donated  to  the  town  for  high  school  purposes, 
and  which  must  be  to  the  present,  and  to  future  generations, 
what  Lee's  Academy  has  been  in  the.  past,  and  we  hope  even 
more.  Leaving  this  quarter  of  a  century,  unequalled  in  the 
history  of  our  country  and  the  world,  in  its  changes  and  pro- 
gress, by  any  other  equal  period  of  the  two  hundred  and  fifty 
years  under  review,  I  proceed  to  speak  of 

THE  FIFTH  PASTORATE. 

This  was  the  shortest  pastorate  of  any  the  church  has  ever 
had,  being  six  years,  ten  months  and  nineteen  days.  It  was 
filled  by  the  Rev.  Samuel  Fisk,  whose  memory  is  still  fragrant 
with  all  who  knew  him.  Mr.  Fisk  was  born  in  Shelburne, 
Mass.,  July  23,  1828.  His  parents  (Dea.  David  and  Mrs. 
Laura  Severance  Fisk,)  were  of  the  old  puritan  stock.  Their 
genealogy  is  said  to  run  back  along  a  line  of  godly  families  to 
the  settlement  of  New  England.  His  boyhood  is  spoken  of 
by  those  familiar  with  his  early  life  as  characterized  by  the 
same  genial  disposition  and  brightness  which  marked  his  later 
years.  When  ill  health  kept  him  from  school,  he  easily  kept 
up  with  his  classes,  by  study  at  home,  and  usually  had  some 
extra  study  in  hand,  by  his  mother's  spinning  wheel.  He 
graduated  at  Amherst  College  in  1844,  with  the  second  honor 
of  his  class.  He  studied  theology  at  Andover,  Mass.,  and  was 
afterwards  a  tutor  at  Amherst  for  three  years.  During  this 
time,  he  frequently  preached  in  the  college  and  in  the  neigh- 
boring churches.  His  small  stature  and  youthful  appearance 
gained  for  him  the  soubriquet  of  "  the  boy  preacher."  In 
1855,  he  traveled  abroad,  visiting  most  of  the  countries  of 
Europe,  together  with  Egypt  and  Palestine,  remaining  some 


26 

months  in  Paris  and  Germany  for  study.  His  letters  while 
abroad,  under  the  title  of  "  Dunn  Brown's  Experiences  in 
Foreign  Parts,"  sparkled  with  wit  and  quaint  pleasantry,  and 
together  with  a  companion  volume,  "  Dunn  Brown  in  the 
Army,"  still  form  most  entertaining  books  for  leisure  hour 
reading.  On  his  return  home,  he  was  invited  to  preach  in 
this  church,  and  was  soon  after  called  to  the  pastorate,  made 
vacant  by  the  death  of  Rev.  Mr  Shepard,  a  short  time  pre- 
vious. This  call  he  accepted,  and  was  ordained  and  installed 
June  3,  1857.  The  sermon  on  the  occasion  was  preached  by 
the  Rev.  John  Todd,  D.  D.,  the  charge  was  made  by  the  Rev. 
Burdette  Hart,  and  the  right  hand  of  fellowship  by  the  Rev. 
Henry  Wicks. 

As  a  man,  Mr.  Fisk  was  characterized  by  great  simplicity, 
geniality,  ready  wit,  and  genuine  ability.  He  made  for  him- 
self a  warm  place  in  every  circle.  His  good  cheer  carried 
sunshine  wherever  he  went.  No  man  could  be  his  enemy. 
His  overflowing  charity,  and  quaint  pleasantry  parried  every 
hostility,  and  made  those  who  might  differ  with  him,  love 
him,  in  spite  of  themselves.  As  an  instance  of  his  sharp 
pleasantry,  it  is  related  of  him  that  on  one  occasion  when 
visiting  a  school  where  great  disorder  prevailed,  he  remarked 
at  the  close  of  the  exercises — as  visitors  are  accustomed  to 
do — upon  the  prevailing  disorder,  and  then,  as  if  to  soften, 
and  at  the  same  time  intensify,  the  severity  of  his  rebuke,  he 
said  :  "  On  the  whole,  this  school  is  the  most  quiet  and 
orderly  and  satisfactory  of  the  ten  schools  I  have  visited, 
except  nine." 

As  a  scholar,  his  perception  was  quick,  his  grasp  of  a  sub- 
ject or  author,  clear  and  comprehensive,  his  memory  retentive, 
and  his  method  of  expression  and  action  entirely  original. 

Of  him  as  a  man,  a  citizen,  a  pastor  and  preacher,  I  need 
not  speak  in  the  presence  of  so  many  in  whose  memory  his 
life  and  character  are  embalmed. 

When  the  Rebellion  broke  out  in  war  upon  the  Union,  his 
own  patriotic  spirit  was  deeply  stirred.  He  resolved  at  length 
to  leave  home,  friends  and  his  church  and  join  the  army  in 
the  field.  He  enlisted  as  a  private  in  Co.  I,  of  the  I4th  Regi- 


27 

ment  of  Conn.  Volunteers,  and  was  mustered  into  the  service 
August  23,  1862.  He  was  chosen  2d  Lieut,  then  ist  Lieut., 
and  afterwards  Captain  of  Company  G,  which  office  he  held 
until  his  death.  In  the  army,  he  was  the  same  cheerful,  witty, 
brave,  helpful  and  heroic  man,  that  characterized  him  in  every 
situation.  His  nearly  two  years'  service  in  the  war  are  a  mat- 
ter of  public  record,  patriotic  devotion  and  highest  honor. 
In  the  first  of  the  great  battles  of  the  Wilderness,  he  fell, 
mortally  wounded,  while  rallying  his  company  to  meet  the 
furious  charge  of  the  enemy.  He  was  taken  to  the  hospital  at 
Fredericksburg,  and  his  family  summoned.  After  lingering  a 
few  days,  at  the  close  of  the  holy  Sabbath.  May  22,  1864,  he 
passed  through  the  pearly  gates,  and  was  forever  at  rest.  His 
eventful  life  of  nearly  thirty-six  years  was  at  an  end.  His 
remains  were  brought  here,  where  funeral  services  were  held, 
and  a  sermon  was  preached  by  the  Rev.  Mr.  Eustis,  then  of 
New  Haven  ;  after  which  under  an  escort  of  a  committee  of 
the  church,  they  were  taken  to  Shelburne  Falls,  his  native 
place,  in  whose  beautiful  cemetery  he  desired  to  be  buried  by 
the  side  of  his  kindred  of  many  generations. 

Thus  ended  the  life  of  a  rare  man, — as  a  friend,  scholar,  wit, 
writer,  preacher  and  soldier.  During  his  absence  in  the  war, 
his  pulpit  was  supplied  by  the  Rev.  Mr.  Loper.  Mr.  Fisk 
took  a  deep  interest  in  the  spiritual  welfare  of  his  flock,  not  a 
few  of  whom  he  guided  to  the  Savior.  During  his  brief  min- 
istry of  seven  years,  only  five  of  which  were  spent  in  pastoral 
service,  eighty-two  were  received  into  the  church. 

THE    FOURTH    PASTORATE. 

Following  back  the  stream  of  the  historic  life  of  this 
Church,  we  come  next  to  the  fourth  pastor,  Rev.  Samuel 
Nicholas  Shepard,  who  served  in  this  capacity  thirty  years, 
ten  months  and  twenty -eight  days. 

He  was  born  in  Lenox.  Mass.,  September  25,  1799.  His 
father  was  the  Rev.  Samuel  Shepard,  D.  D.,  of  Lenox.  He 
graduated  from  Williams  College  in  1821,  studied  theology  in 
Auburn,  N.  Y.,  and  was  soon  after  called  to  the  pastorate  of 


28 

this  church.  He  was  ordained  and  installed  November  2, 
1825.  The  Sermon  on  the  occasion  was  preached  by  Dr. 
Samuel  Shepard,  the  Charge  to  the  Pastor  was  given  by  Rev. 
Frederick  W.  Hotchkiss,  and  the  Right  Hand  of  Fellowship 
by  Rev.  Zalva  Whitmore.  Mr.  Shepard  was  a  man  of  strong 
individuality  and  independence  of  character.  He  was  positive 
in  his  opinions  and  fearless  in  the  enunciation  of  them.  As 
a  preacher  he  was  earnest,  forcible  and  practical.  His  ser- 
mons were  vigorous  in  thought,  original  in  style  and  forcible 
in  delivery.  The  truth  he  preached  to  others  he  deeply  felt 
himself.  He  was  often  moved  to  tears,  while  he  spoke  with 
great  tenderness  and  often  with  captivating  eloquence.  He 
had  the  ready  and  happy  faculty  of  adapting  himself  to  every 
occasion.  His  prayers  in  the  sanctuary,  on  funeral  and  other 
occasions,  are  spoken  of  as  remarkable  for  their  warmth,  felicity 
of  expression  and  adaptation  to  circumstances.  As  a  pastor, 
he  was  kind  and  sympathetic;  as  a  citizen,  public  spirited  and 
deeply  interested  in  all  public  improvements,  many  of  which 
still  remain,  the  fruits  of  his  labors.  His  death  was  sudden 
and  affecting.  On  the  Sabbath  he  preached  with  his  usual 
spirit  and  power;  on  Monday  he  was  slightly  indisposed;  on 
Tuesday  he  was  seized  with  violent  pains  in  his  head,  and  soon 
after  became  unconscious,  and  about  three  o'clock  in  the 
afternoon  (September  30,  1856)  he  died,  at  the  age  of  fifty- 
seven  years.  His  funeral  was  attended  in  this  house.  Rev. 
A.  C.  Baldwin  preached  the  sermon,  which  was  published, 
and  his  remains  were  buried  in  the  West  Cemetery  with  those 
of  his  three  predecessors  in  office. 

Several  revivals  of  great  power  attended  his  ministry.  In 
1827  one  hundred  and  one  united  with  the  church.  In  1831 
sixty-four  were  added;  in  1843  one  hundred  and  three  were 
received;  the  whole  number  received  during  his  ministry  was 
five  hundred  and  two.  It  was  during  his  pastorate  that  this 
Sanctuary  was  built.  It  was  dedicated  November  21,  1838. 
As  so  often  happens,  a  serious  controversy  arose  regarding  the 
site  of  the  new  Meeting  House.  This  dissatisfaction  with  the 
present  site  culminated  in  the  withdrawal  of  forty-seven 
members  for  the  purpose  of  forming  a  new  and  independent 


29 

Church.  Measures  were  taken  to  build  a  House  of  Worship. 
This  serious  breach  in  the  parish  was  finally,  by  mutual  con- 
cessions, through  the  friendly  advice  of  the  congregation, 
healed  and  harmony  restored.  Those  who  had  been  aggrieved 
returned,  the  building  erected  by  them  passed  into  the  hands 
of  the  Methodist  society,  and  has  been  their  church  home  ever 
since,  now  nearly  or  quite  half  a  century. 

As  a  part  of  the  cotemporaneous  Ecclesiastical  history  of 
Madison,  I  may  say,  the  M.  E.  Church  in  this  place  was 
organized  in  1839  by  the  Rev.  James  H.  Perry.  Meetings 
at  first  were  held  in  private  houses  and  school-houses,  until 
the  present  building  came  into  their  possession.  Many  min- 
isters have  served  them  during  the  half  century,  not  a  few  of 
prominence  in  their  denomination.  Through  many  adversi- 
ties the  Church  has  held  bravely  on.  I  have  always  found 
their  pastors  cordial  and  pleasant  fellow  workers,  Christian 
gentlemen,  earnest,  and  many  of  them,  able  preachers  of  the 
gospel.  The  present  pastor  is  the  Rev.  S.  G.  Neil.  This 
branch  of  our  Ecclesiastical  tree  you  see  springing  out  of  our 
East  Guilford  or  Madison  history. 

The  prejudice  existing  between  religious  denominations 
fifty  years  ago  has  passed  away.  Christian  fellowship,  mutual 
esteem,  and  fraternal  co-operation  have  superseded  the  days 
of  bigotry  and  intolerance. 

Another  event  of  importance  took  place  at  the  beginning 
of  Mr.  Shepard's  ministry.  In  1826,  the  year  following  his 
settlement,  East  Guilford,  which  had  been  for  187  years  an 
integral  part  of  the  town  of  Guilford,  became  a  separate  town, 
and  took  the  name  of  Madison,  and  set  up  housekeeping  for 
itself,  in  which  capacity  it  has  lost  none  of  its  historic 
prestige. 

THE    THIRD    PASTORATE. 

The  third  pastor  of  this  church  was  the  Rev.  John  Elliott, 
D.  D. 

He  was  born  in  Killingworth  (now  Clinton),  August  24, 
1768,  and  was  the  son  of  Dea.  George  Elliott,  the  grandson 
of  the  Rev.  Jared  Elliott,  M.  D.,  and  the  great-grandson  of 


30 

Rev.  Joseph  Elliott  of  Guilford.  He  graduated  at  Yale  Col- 
lege in  1786,  after  which  he  devoted  several  years  to  teaching 
and  the  study  of  Theology.  He  was  ordained  and  installed 
as  pastor  of  this  Church,  November  2,  1791,  at  the  age  of  23 
years.  Rev.  Achilles  Mansfield  preached  the  ordination  ser- 
mon; President  Styles  of  Yale  College,  gave  the  charge,  and 
Rev.  Frederick  W,  Hotchkiss,  the  right  hand  of  fellowship. 
The  Society  voted  to  give  him  "as  a  settlement,  ^200  lawful 
money,"  to  be  paid,  "  one-third  in  cash,  one-third  in  neat 
cattle,  and  one  third  in  produce  at  the  current  market  price  " 
"  the  sd.  sum  of  two  hundred  pound,  to  be  paid  in 
three  years  from  the  time  he  settles,  one-third  part  of  each 
payment  to  be  made  annually."  His  salary  was  fixed  at 
"  ;£8o  lawful  money  per  annum,  and  20  cords  of  merchantable 
oak  wood."  This  was  subsequently  increased  to  "^85,  and 
25  cords  of  wood." 

Dr.  Elliott  made  a  deep  impression  upon  the  people.  He 
had  the  dignity,  gravity,  sedateness,  and  general  bearing  of 
the  gentleman  of  the  olden  time.  He  was  precise  in  speech, 
and  methodical  in  all  his  movements. 

Dr.  Todd,  in  his  autobiographical  sketches,  gives  his  im- 
pression of  him  as  received  by  him  when  as  a  boy  he  lived 
with  his  uncle,  Jonathan  Todd,  M.  D.,  in  East  Guilford.  He 
says  :  "  He  was  a  tall,  very  thin  and  slim  man.  His  legs, 
always  draped  in  black  stockings  and  small  clothes,  seemed 
too  slender  to  hold  him  up.  How  neatly  he  was  always 
draped,  not  a  spot  or  wrinkle  on  his  garments  !  What  a 
broad-brimmed  hat  he  wore,  renewed  just  once  in  two  years. 
His  manners  and  bearing  were  most  gentlemanly.  He  was 
a  fine  scholar,  a  genuine  lover  of  study,  a  capital  preacher,  a 
wise  and  shrewd  man.  How  we  boys  and  girls  were  wont  to 
look  upon  him  with  awe  and  reverence,  unable  to  believe  that 
the  common  frailties  of  human  nature  hung  about  him." 

Prof.  William  C.  Fowler,  in  a  private  note  to  me,  says  of 
him:  "He  was  dignified,  deferential  to  others,  and  yet  very 
cordial  and  polite  in  his  manners.  His  enunciation  was  dis- 
tinct but  slow,  and  very  impressive.  In  his  public  services 
he  never  seemed  to  hesitate  for  a  word  or  thought.  His 


style  was  transparent,  and  his  sermons  written  out  in  a  clear, 
handsome  hand,  ready  for  the  press.  He  was  a  good  classical 
scholar,  a  daily  reader  of  the  Hebrew  Bible."  Among  the 
students  he  fitted  for  college  were  "Jeremiah  Evarts,  the  Field 
brothers,  William  Todd,  Joseph  Hand  and  Ebenezer  Munger, 
Dr.  Harvey  Elliott  and  others,"  Prof.  Fowler  among  the  num- 
ber. "He  and  Mr.  Johnson,  the  father  of  Samuel  Johnson, 
prepared  a  Dictionary  for  Schools  (a  copy  of  which  is  on  ex- 
hibition among  the  relics  in  Guilford).  He  had  several  stu- 
dents in  Theology.  About  the  time,  or  a  little  after,  the  lay 
preachers  in  New  Haven  were  active  in  the  community,  a  Mr. 
Pease,  from  Vermont,  came  to  live  in  East  Guilford.  He  en- 
deavored to  let  his  light  shine.  At  a  church  meeting  he 
proposed  that  a  committee  be  appointed  to  visit  the  families 
in  the  parish,  converse  with  them,  etc.  Dr.  Elliott,  in  an  im- 
pressive manner,  said:  'That  is  ministerial;  I  will  endeavor 
to  do  my  duty.'  That  settled  the  matter  for  a  time." 

Says  Dr.  Fitch,  in  the  sermon  preached  at  his  funeral,  he 
was  "a  man  of  distinguished  prudence,  of  cool  judgment,  of 
upright  constancy,  affectionate  kindness,  of  peculiar  sedate- 
ness  and  solemnity  and  of  pious  devotion."  As  a  preacher, 
his  sermons  show  systematic  thought,  great  purity  and  force 
of  style,  solemnity  of  movement,  and  often  sublimity  of 
thought  and  expression.  Several  sermons  of  his,  delivered  on 
public  occasions,  were  printed  and  a  few  copies  are  still 
extant.  His  pastorate  continued  thirty-three  years.  He  died 
December  17,  1824,  aged  56  years.  During  his  ministry 
several  revivals  of  religion  of  great  power  took  place.  In 
1802-3  seventy  were  received  into  the  church.  In  1809  about 
sixty  were  admitted.  In  1820  ninety  joined  the  Church.  Dr. 
Elliott  received  in  all  during  his  ministry  338. 

Dr.  Elliott's  standing  as  an  able  preacher  and  scholar  was 
high  among  the  Churches.  In  1812  he  was  elected  a  fellow 
of  the  corporation  of  Yale  College,  and  in  1816  a  member  of 
the  Prudential  Committee  of  that  body.  In  1822  he  received 
the  degree  of  Doctor  of  Divinity.  Under  his  ministry,  the 
half-way  Covenant  Plan  of  Church  Membership  died  out. 

The  first  record  of  a  Sunday  School  occurs  during  Dr. 


32 

Elliott's  pastorate.  It  is  as  follows:  "At  a  Church  meeting 
in  May,  1820,  William  Hart,  Deacon  Meigs,  Deacon  Hoit, 
Timothy  Dudley,  Amos  Bishop,  Benjamin  Hart  and  Ezra 
Smith  were  appointed  a  committee  to  organize  the  Sabbath 
School  and  superintend  the  school  when  organized." 

It  was  also  during  his  ministry  that  the  plan  of  sustaining 
the  institutions  of  the  gospel  by  a  tax  upon  all  residents 
within  the  bounds  of  the  society,  was  changed  to  the  volun- 
tary system.  Dr.  Elliott  was  so  apprehensive  of  the  failure 
of  this  plan  that  he  set  about  raising  a  ministerial  fund  for 
the  benefit  of  this  Church  and  Society.  This  was  in  1815;  at 
the  end  of  ten  years  it  amounted  to  $1,918.63.  It  was  to  be 
kept  at  interest  until  the  principal  should  amount  to  $10,000, 
after  which  the  income  was  to  be  applied  towards  the  pay- 
ment of  the  pastor's  salary.  This  became  available  in  1855. 

It  was  during  Dr.  Elliott's  ministry  that  the  Rockland  M. 
E.  church  was  established.  Their  house  of  worship  was  built 
in  1802  or  1803,  but  the  society  was  formed  some  years  before, 
services  being  held  in  the  school  house  or  in  private  houses. 
The  present  pastor,  Rev.  George  Bennet,  thinks  the  society 
very  nearly  a  hundred  years  old.  You  see  it  represented  at 
the  extreme  north  of  the  East  Guilford  branch  of  our  Ecclesi- 
astical tree.  The  record  of  its  pastors  1  have  not  been  able  to 
obtain.  They  occupy  a  neighborhood  remote  from  other 
churches,  and  bring  the  Gospel  to  those  who  might  not  other- 
wise be  reached  by  it. 

Dr.  Elliott  was  married  November  3,  1792,  to  Sarah  Nor- 
ton, daughter  of  Lot  Norton,  of  Salisbury,  Conn.,  who  sur- 
vived him,  and  was  subsequently  married  to  Gen.  Sterling. 
They  had  no  children. 

A  glance  at  the  side  lights  of  Dr.  Elliott's  day  will  reveal  the 
spinning  wheel,  the  loom,  the  cheese-press  and  churn  in  every 
house.  The  portrait  of  the  busy  and  frugal  housewife  as  set  in 
the  proverb,  might  be  seen  in  every  household,  "  She  seeketh 
wool  and  flax,  and  worketh  willingly  with  her  hands."  The 
tailoress  and  shoemaker  were  yearly  visitors  to  the  home,  to 
make  up  the  family  outfit.  Every  house  had  its  saddle  and 
pillion,  and  indispensable  horse-block.  Foot-stoves  supple- 


33 

merited  the  wide  and  generous  fireplace,  with  its  pot-hooks 
and  trammels.  The  tinder  box,  with  its  steel  and  flint  and 
sulphur  splints,  and  the  old  flint-lock  musket,  were  the  fire 
reserves  of  the  households.  The  stage  coach  was  the  palace 
car  of  the  period,  and  its  arrival  the  one  great  event  of  the 
week.  Coasting  vesels  lined  the  shore,  and  the  hills  and  val- 
leys teemed  with  busy  workmen.  It  was  the  stay-at  home  era, 
when  labor  was  content  with  honest  and  moderate  gains,  and 
simple,  but  genuine  comforts.  The  village  singing  school 
and  spelling  match,  the  apple-parings  and  husking  bees, 
wherein  the  lucky  finder  of  the  crimson  ear,  was  awarded 
crimson  privileges,  were  the  staple  entertainments  of  the 
young  people.  The  farm  and  the  fishing  net,  and  the  country 
store  furnished  ample  occupations  for  the  people.  If  there 
were  fewer  comforts  and  luxuries,  there  were  fewer  wants 
and  greater  contentment  and  satisfaction. 

THE    SECOND    PASTORATE. 

Going  back  into  the  last  century,  we  come  to  the  Second 
Pastorate  of  this  church,  which  embraced  a  period  of  fifty- 
seven  years  and  four  months. 

Rev.  Jonathan  Todd,  the  second  pastor,  was  a  native  of 
New  Haven,  born  March  20,  1713.  His  parents  were  Jona- 
than and  Sarah  Morrison  Todd.  He  graduated  at  Yale  Col- 
lege in  1732,  and  was  ordained  and  installed  over  this  church, 
October  24,  1733,  when  20  years  of  age.  Rev.  Joseph  Noyes 
of  New  Haven  preached  the  sermon. 

Mr.  Todd  had  the  reputation  of  being  an  excellent  scholar. 
He  was  a  fine  linguist,  fond  of  historical  studies,  and  took  a 
deep  interest  in  scientific  pursuits.  He  was  one  of  the  lead- 
ing clergymen  of  the  State,  in  his  day.  As  a  preacher,  he 
was  simple,  plain,  discursive  and  instructive.  "  His  sermons," 
says  Dr.  Elliott,  "  were  not  adorned  with  the  studied  orna- 
ments of  language  or  the  flowers  of  rhetoric  ;  his  ideas  were 
not  clothed  with  that  tinsel,  which  glitters,  but  does  not  en- 
lighten ;  neither  did  he  study  to  embellish  his  writings  with 
round  and  harmonious  periods,  or  to  shine  as  a  graceful 
orator.  They  were,  however,  replete  with  sentiment,  with 


34 

exhibitions  of  important  truths,  with  forcible  arguments,  solid 
reasoning  and  much  practical  instruction.  CHRIST  JESUS, 
and  him  crucified,  was  the  sum  and  substance  of  his  preach- 
ing." The  following  tribute  to  his  memory  is  on  the  tablet 
which  marks  his  grave  in  the  West  Cemetery :  "  He  had  a 
contemplative  mind  ;  read  and  thought  much  ;  was  candid  in 
his  enquiries,  and  in  science,  theology  and  history,  had  a  clear 
discernment  and  sound  judgment.  Singularly  mild  and  amia- 
ble in  his  disposition  ;  clothed  with  humility  and  plainness, 
serene  in  all  the  occurrences  of  life,  a  friend  and  patriot,  a 
most  laborious  and  faithful  minister,  guided  by  the  sacred 
oracles  ;  eminent  in  piety  and  resignation  ;  adorning  religion 
which  brings  glory  to  God,  and  salvation  to  men." 

Dr.  Field  describes  him,  as  a  man  of  "  a  spare  habit,  with 
dark  hazel  but  bright  eye,  and  countenance  not  wanting  in 
intelligence,  and  specially  marked  by  benignant  and  benev- 
olent feeling."  He  also  says,  "  He  did  not  belong  to  the 
stricter  school  of  Calvinists,  and  it  may  be  doubted  whether, 
properly  speaking,  he  was  a  Calvinist." 

A  wide-spread  epidemic  prevailed  in  the  parish  in  the  years 
1750  and  1751.  Forty -three,  including  many  heads  of  fam- 
ilies, died  in  a  single  year.  To  the  care  of  the  sick  and  dying, 
Mr.  Todd  devoted  himself  day  and  night  with  unremitting 
fidelity. 

He  continued  in  the  active  duties  of  his  ministry  until  the 
last  year  of  his  life.  His  decline  was  gradual  and  tranquil. 
He  died  February  24,  1791,  at  the  age  of  77  years  II  months 
and  4  days. 

At  his  ordination,  the  Church  consisted  of  51  members. 
During  the  first  24  years  of  his  ministry,  he  received  into  the 
Church  224.  The  early  records  of  the  Church  were  unfor- 
tunately burned  by  a  fire  in  his  study. 

On  the  supposition  that  the  same  proportionate  number 
were  received  during  the  remainder  of  his  ministry,  it  would 
make  the  whole  number  received  by  him  565.  At  his  death, 
the  Church  consisted  of  84  members.  His  wife  was  Eliza- 
beth Couch,  daughter  of  Samuel  Couch  of  Fairfield,  Conn. 
She  died  December  14,  1783,  aged  73  years.  They  had  no 
children. 


35 

THE    SECOND    MEETING-HOUSE. 

Soon  after  Mr.  Todd's  settlement,  a  movement  was  made 
to  build  a  new  Meeting-House.  After  two  years  spent  in 
controversy  over  the  site,  during  which  a  Council  was  called, 
and  a  committee  from  the  General  Assembly  sent  to  locate 
the  proposed  building,  it  was  finally  decided  to  place  it  near 
the  site  of  the  first  Meeting-House,  which  stood  near,  or  a 
little  south  of  the  present  east  entrance  to  the  Green.  The 
entire  Center  was  then  an  open  common,  crossed  by  roads, 
dotted  over  with  Sabbath-Day  houses,  sharing  its  accommo- 
dations with  a  tannery  and  an  alder  swamp.  The  new 
Meeting-House  was  dedicated  in  May,  1743.  Many  of  you 
remember  well  that  venerable  structure,  which  for  nearly  a 
hundred  years  was  the  Sabbath  resort  of  the  people.  In  this 
house,  for  nearly  half  a  century,  the  people  listened  to  the 
plain,  practical,  and  instructive  sermons  of  Pastor  Todd,  and 
afterwards,  for  a  third  of  a  century,  to  the  solemn,  majestic 
and  impressive  sermons  of  Dr.  Elliott,  and  for  over  thirteen 
years  to  the  fervid  eloquence  of  Shepard,  to  whom  it  was 
given  to  preach  its  farewell.  The  clock  was  transferred  to  the 
steeple  of  the  present  house,  where  for  more  than  a  half 
century  it  has  continued  to  mark  the  passing  hours  of  the 
living,  and  the  closing  hours  of  the  dead,  as  it  had  done  per- 
haps a  half  century  before  in  the  former  Meeting-house.  In 
1 80 1,  a  bell  was  added,  which  supplanted  the  drum,  in  calling 
together  the  worshippers.  This  bell  is  still  in  service  in  the 
church  in  North  Madison, — the  same  in  metal  and  orthodox 
tone,  though  recast,  because  cracked  in  a  baptism  of  fire 
which  consumed  the  steeple.  The  old  plan  of  "  dignifying '' 
the  Meeting-House  by  assigning  seats,  according  to  age  and 
the  grand  list,  prevailed  in  this  house,  and  also  of  separating 
the  sexes,  dividing  thus  even  families. 

THE     CHURCH     IN     NORTH     MADISON. 

It  was  during  Mr.  Todd's  pastorate  that  the  people  in  the 
north  part  of  the  parish  (now  North  Madison)  became  a  Soci- 
ety and  a  Church.  December  3,  1744,  they  requested 
"liberty  to  have  winter  preaching  among  themselves,"  and 


36 

December  5,  1748,  they  petitioned  "for  leave  to  be  a  winter 
parish,"  and  March  5,  1752,  they  asked  liberty  "to  set  up 
public  worship  of  God  among  themselves,  as  a  distinct  Soci- 
ety." This  request  was  granted.  A  new  Society  was  formed 
under  the  name  of  North  Bristol,  and  its  bounds  defined  by 
act  of  General  Assembly  May,  1753.  The  Church  "'embod- 
ied" by  subscribing  to  a  covenant  and  articles  of  faith  March 
23>  17S7-  It  is>  therefore,  now  132  years  old.  It  has  had 
seven  pastors  installed  from  1757  to  1840.  These  were  Rich- 
ard Ely,  Simeon  Backus,  John  Ely,  David  Metcalf,  Jared 
Andrus,  Stephen  Hayes  and  Amos  Le  Favor.  Since  that 
time  they  have  had  fifteen  stated  supplies,  or  acting  pastors, 
the  shortest  of  whose  term  was  three  months  and  the  longest 
nine  years.  The  present  pastor  is  Rev.  William  E.  B.  Moore, 
who  began  his  ministry  there  in  April,  1885.  The  present 
membership  of  the  church  is  ninety-nine. 

The  period  now  under  review  covers  a  most  important  era 
in  the  history  of  the  country.  It  is  the  great  war  period.  It 
includes  the  French  and  Indian  war,  the  most  important  of 
the  Colonial  wars,  the  Revolutionary  war,  from  the  battle  of 
Lexington  in  1775  to  the  surrender  of  Cornwallis  in  1781,  and 
the  cessation  of  hostilities  in  1783.  It  witnessed  the  Decla- 
ration of  Independence;  the  successful  termination  of  the  war; 
the  treaty  of  peace;  the  adoption  of  the  constitution;  the  first 
congress,  and  the  inauguration  of  George  Washington  as  the 
first  President  of  the  United  States.  Events  that  seem  far 
distant  to  us,  but  their  footprints  are  all  around  us  to-day  and 
help  to  make  this  anniversary  possible  and  jubilant. 

THE     FIRST     PASTORATE. 

One  more  step  backward  in  this  Historical  Review  brings 
us  to  the  First  Pastor,  the  Rev.  John  Hart,  a  native  of  Farm- 
ington,  Conn.,  who  was  born  April  12,  1682.  He  entered 
Cambridge  College  and  continued  there  three  years.  In  1702 
he  removed  to  Saybrook  and  became  the  sole  member  of  the 
Senior  Class  of  Yale  College,  then  in  its  infancy.  The  fol- 
lowing year  (1703)  he  graduated  and  was  the  first  regular 
graduate  of  the  College.  Degrees  previously  conferred  were 
honorary. 


37 

Soon  after  graduation  Mr.  Hart  was  elected  tutor  of  the 
College,  which  office  he  held  for  several  years,  during  which 
time  he  was  licensed  to  preach,  and  as  early  as  the  winter  of 
1705  he  preached  to  the  newly  formed  society  of  East  Guil- 
ford.  In  June,  1706,  he  was  invited  to  settle.  In  November, 
1707,  the  same  day  on  which  the  Church  was  organized,  he 
was  ordained  and  installed.  He  continued  in  this  office  till 
his  death,  March  4,  1731,  in  the  twenty-fourth  year  of  his 
ministry  and  in  the  forty-ninth  year  of  his  age.  Mr.  Hart  is 
represented  to  have  been  a  minister  of  decided  ability  as  a 
student  and  sermonizer.  As  a  preacher,  he  was  forcible,  clear, 
earnest,  persuasive  and  spiritual.  He  was  a  man  of  great 
prudence,  geniality  and  circumspection.  Rev.  Mr.  Chaun- 
cey  of  Durham  describes  him  as  "one  endowed  with  a  large 
treasure  of  natural ,  ability,  quickness  of  invention,  clearness 
of  thought,  soundness  of  judgment  and  great  strength  of 
reason.  His  preaching  was  powerful,  sweet  and  persuasive. 
The  graces  of  the  Christian  shone  with  commanding  majesty 
in  his  life  and  conversation."  After  a  long  period  of  suffering, 
which  he  bore  with  Christian  equanimity  and  patience,  he  died 
March  4,  1731.  His  grave  is  in  yonder  Cemetery,  where 
many  of  his  congregation  also  sleep. 

Mr.  Hart  was  thrice  married.  His  first  wife  was  Rebecca 
Hubbard  of  Boston,  by  whom  he  had  two  children.  His  sec- 
ond wife  was  Sarah  Bull  of  Hartford,  by  whom  he  had  one 
child.  His  third  wife  was  Mary  Hooker  of  Guilford,  by  whom 
he  had  six  children.  Four  of  his  children  died  young.  Of 
the  remainder,  the  eldest,  William  Hart,  was  pastor  of  the 
Church  in  Saybrook;  one  was  a  deacon  in  this  Church  and 
three  settled  in  Guilford.  The  Church  at  its  formation  had 
thirteen  male  members.  Mr.  Hart  admitted  eighty  into  the 
Church  during  his  pastorate. 

THE     FIRST     MEETING     HOUSE. 

This  was  built  in  1705.  Many  votes  are  on  record  showing 
various  additions  from  time  to  time.  It  was  a  barn-like  edi- 
fice, with  doors  on  the  south,  east  and  west.  Long  seats  were 
on  each  side  of  the  center  aisle  and  pews  on  the  sides.  "John 


38 

Grave  was  chosen  to  beat  the  drum  on  Sabbath  days  and  other 
public  days  for  twenty  shillings  the  year"  and  "Widow  Martha 
Dudley  was  chosen  to  sweep  the  Meeting  House  this  year 
and  to  do  it  for  twenty  shillings."  For  forty  years  this  plain 
edifice  was  the  religious  home  of  the  people. 

This  Church,  during  its  182  years'  existence,  has  had  six 
pastors.  It  has  never  been  without  a  pastor  except  during 
the  brief  intervals  of  the  pastorates.  It  has  never  dismissed 
a  pastor.  It  has  had  many  honorable,  Christian  men  among 
its  officers,  men  whose  memory  is  fragrant  still  in  the  Church; 
and  many  noble  and  heroic  and  saintly  women,  true  mothers 
in  Israel,  whose  prayers  are  vials  full  of  odors,  underneath 
the  Throne  of  God  forever. 

East  Guilford  has  been  ever  the  firm  friend  of  Education 
and  has  sent  many  of  her  sons  to  college.  This  oldest  daugh- 
ter of  the  mother  Church  has  raised  up  a  goodly  number  of 
ministers  of  the  gospel.  Our  Church  roll  of  ministers  bears 
on  it  the  name  of  Buel,  a  cluster  of  Lees,  the  Dowd  brothers 
(Charles  and  Wedworth),  the  Murrays,  Willard,  Loper, 
Crampton,  Fowler,  Bushnell,  Scranton,  Field  (David  and  Tim- 
othy), Stone  (Andrew,  Seth  and  William),  Hart  and  Bartlett — 
in  all  22. 

Thus  we  come  to  the  time  when  East  Guilford  was  a  part 
of  the  mother  Church  in  Guilford.  The  Church  life  which 
the  "East  farmers"  enjoyed  for  sixty-eight  years  in  common 
with  the  Church  in  Guilford,  under  its  first  pastors,  Whit- 
field,  Higginson,  Elliott  and  Ruggles,  will  be  given  us  no 
doubt  in  the  other  services  of  this  two  hundred  and  fiftieth 
anniversary.  The  immigration,  the  causes  which  led  thereto, 
the  covenant  on  shipboard,  the  settlement,  the  purchase  of  the 
land  of  the  Indians,  their  civil  and  church  life,  I  leave  to  oth- 
ers to  describe.  In  closing  this  brief  sketch  of  the  Ecclesias- 
tical History  of  East  Guilford,  I  may  say  the  same  spirit  of 
self-sacrifice,  of  independence,  of  resolute  endeavor  and  love 
of  liberty  which  characterized  the  Founders,  flowed  out  in  the 
sap  of  the  East  Guilford  branch  and  nourished  in  it  an  ever- 
green life,  redolent  of  freedom  and  hardy  manhood.  The 
restrictions  and  hardships  of  the  wilderness  were  nothing  to 


39 

such  men,  compared  to  restriction  of  conscience,  of  opinion, 
and  of  action,  imposed  by  Hierarchical  Tyranny.  That  first 
half  century  was  the  age  of  homespun;  luxury  was  neither 
known  nor  desired.  Industry  was  the  common  law.  Imple- 
ments were  crude  and  the  habits  of  the  people  simple.  Na- 
ture predominated  over  art.  Shoddy  had  not  been  invented, 
nor  the  dude  developed.  The  Bible  and  the  Catechism  were 
the  family  library.  Newspapers  were  rare  and  a  magazine,  in 
the  modern  sense,  unknown.  Books  were  few;  the  minister 
was  the  only  circulating  library.  We  may  smile  at  their  ec- 
centricities, but  may  well  emulate  their  sterling  virtues  of 
manhood  and  womanhood.  The  past  inspires  us.  We  glory 
in  foundation  men,  at  the  beginning  and  all  along  the  line. 
The  Church  has  always  had  them  and  has  them  still.  East 
Guilford  is  rich  in  builders.  Many  honored  names  has  she 
given  to  cities  and  towns  and  business  enterprises  throughout 
the  broad  land.  Her  contribution  to  the  country  in  war  and 
in  peace  is  an  honorable  record.  Among  the  oldest  and  most 
successful  merchants  in  the  city  of  New  Haven,  we  find  the 
name  of  Wilcox,  of  East  Guilford  birth  and  early  training, 
and  still  having  his  beautiful  summer  residence  with  us,  we 
are  happy  to  say,  and  still  active  in  business,  bringing  forth 
fruit  in  old  age;  a  name  given  by  Madison  to  law,  to  medi- 
cine, to  mercantile  pursuits  throughout  the  country,  north, 
south,  east  and  west.  We  have,  also,  our  Bushnells,  from 
Francis  Bushnell,  one  of  the  covenanters  on  board  the  ship 
which  brought  the  first  settlers  of  Menuncatuck,  a  name  asso- 
ciated with  wide-awake  activity  on  many  fields,  giving  force 
to  patriotism,  to  religion,  and  to  practical  business;  suggestive 
of  good  cheer  and,  as  we  are  renewedly  assured  this  morning, 
with  song  in  its  best  and  most  sacred  service,  through  the 
Bushnell  brothers. 

A  fitting  companion-name  to  which  the  "  East  Farmers  " 
are  entitled,  is  that  of  Scranton.  A  name  full  of  energy  and 
push,  making  itself  felt  in  every  form  of  industry  and  enter- 
prise, throughout  the  land, — creating  and  naming  cities, — a 
strength  and  help  in  every  good  cause,  a  genuine  live  element 
in  the  world's  forces. 


40 

East  Guilford  has  also  a  valid  claim  upon  the  name  of 
Hand.  A  name  more  than  two  hundred  and  fifty  years  old 
in  colonial  history,  and  appearing  early  among  the  settlers  of 
the  Hammonasset  District.  It  is  to  be  found  with  the  peti- 
tions to  the  town  of  Guilford  and  to  the  General  Court  in 
Hartford  for  "  libertie  to  be  a  societie  by  themselves  ;"  a 
pioneer  name  in  the  West  and  South,  honorably  linked  with 
the  bench,  with  business  and  with  benevolent  and  educational 
work, — a  name  to  be  reckoned  among  foundation  builders. 

The  name  of  Field  is  an  East  Guilford  trophy.  Whether 
eminent  in  the  pulpit,  on  the  bench,  at  the  bar,  in  journalism, 
in  international  telegraphy,  or  in  other  spheres,  East  Guilford 
and  Madison  will  have  a  just  pride  in  their  ancestral  blood 
and  birth. 

Dowd  is  another  name  identified  with  the  early  settlers.  It 
appears  among  the  ship  covenanters  of  June  I,  1639,  and  is 
in  the  earliest  records  of  East  Guilford  Center.  It  is  identi- 
fiied  not  only  with  our  own  church  and  society  life,  but  with 
the  life  and  growth  of  business  and  educational  enterprises  in 
other  places. 

We  claim  also  a  partnership  in  the  name  of  Coe  and  all  its 
achievements. 

The  name  of  James  Lee  is  among  the  early  settlers  of 
East  Guilford,  and  we  have  the  name  still  in  honor  among  us, 
notwithstanding  we  have  freely  given  of  it,  for  founders  and 
builders  in  various  spheres  in  the  East  and  in  the  farthest 
West. 

From  the  famous  ship's  company,  East  Guilford  appropri- 
ates also  the  names  of  Bishop,  Chittenden,  Leete,  Stone, 
Dudley,  Norton,  Cruttenden,  and  Naish.  To  these  we  join 
in  honorable  mention,  the  early  names  of  Munger,  Willard, 
Meigs,  Smith,  Crampton,  Kelsey,  Hill,  Hart,  Todd,  Grave, 
Hoyt,  Hull,  Bradley,  etc., — but  I  must  forbear,  or  I  shall 
trench  upon  other  speakers,  who  during  these  anniversary 
exercises,  are  to  address  us  on  the  eminent  men  raised  up  in 
these  related  towns. 

It  only  remains  for  me  to  speak  in  behalf  of  the  humble 
and  quiet  builders,  who,  though  unnamed  on  the  scroll  of  high 


fame,  have  yet  been  very  important  factors  in  the  establish- 
ment and  growth  of  all  our  cherished  institutions  in  Church 
and  State.  "  The  work  unknown  good  men  have  done  is  like 
a  vein  of  water  flowing  hidden  underground,  secretly  making 
the  ground  green."  They  are  silent,  conservative,  stable 
builders,  whose  daily  faithfulness  in  ordinary  work,  makes 
them  genuine  forces  in  founding,  upholding  and  advancing 
the  common  interests  of  the  people.  What  would  the  artist 
be  without  his  paints  and  brush,  the  mason  without  his  sand 
and  cement,  the  author  without  the  type-setter  and  pressman, 
or  the  general  without  his  army  ?  Even  so  all  great  works 
depend  for  their  success,  upon  the  humble  builders  who  go  in 
and  out,  in  the  daily  routine  of  common  place.  They  are 
builders  as  truly  as  those  of  wider  name  and  fame  ;  their 
lives  are  as  essential,  their  work  as  grand,  and  their  reward  as 
sure. 

In  yonder  cemetery, — Madison's  storehouse  of  garnered 
treasures, — sleep  the  dead  of  these  centuries. 

The  1800  counted  graves  represent  every  grade  and  degree 
of  social  condition.  Four  of  the  honored  pastors  of  this 
church  are  there,  with  their  flocks  gathered  around  them. 
Many  of  the  officers  of  the  church  are  there.  Soldiers  and 
civilians  rest  there  from  their  labors.  One  by  one  we  quietly 
enter  the  gateway  to  God's  Acre.  The  fathers  and  the  chil- 
dren are  there.  The  ripe  fruit  on  our  ancestral  tree  drops  off 
into  the  lap  of  mother  earth,  and  the  dust  returns  to  the  earth 
as  it  was,  and  the  spirit  to  God  who  gave  it.  Instead  of  the 
fathers,  are  the  children.  As  the  fathers  met  their  opportu- 
nity and  responsibility  in  laying  deep  the  foundations  in  the 
virgin  soil  of  the  new  world,  so  may  the  children  meet  theirs, 
in  rearing  the  superstructure  thereon  ;  and  in  their  joint  suc- 
cess, may  they  in  reverent  and  sweet  accord,  say,  "  We  are 
laborers  together  with  God." 

Amen  and  Amen. 


The  following  poem,  with  the  prefatory  note,  was  read  by 
the  Rev.  J.  A.  Gallup  as  a  part  of  the  opening  services  of  the 
Guilford  Quarter-Millenial  Celebration  held  in  the  Madison 
Congregational  Church  on  Sunday  morning,  September  8th, 
1889.  The  verses  were  contributed  to  the  occasion  by  Geo. 
A.  Wilcox,  of  Detroit.  A  native  of  Madison.  Descendant 
(of  John  Willcock,  Hartford,  1637,)  of  Thomas  Wilcox,  Guil- 
ford, 1742,  and  Thomas  Norton,  Guilford,  1639. 

POEM. 


A  PURITAN  SABBATH  IN  WINTER. 

[It  might  readily  be  assumed  that  what  little  inspiration  there  is  in  these 
verses  is  due  to  their  being  a  faint  echo  to  Burns'  "Cotter's  Saturday 
Night."  As  a  matter  of  fact,  however,  the  writer  at  the  time  of  their  com- 
position had  never  either  seen  or  heard  of  that  famous  poem.  The  first 
suggestion  of  this  attempt  to  portray  a  Puritan  Sabbath  was  when  the 
writer  (a  youth  of  16)  remained  at  home  one  wintry  Sabbath  in  Connecticut, 
and  had  some  compunctions  of  conscience  as  he  recalled  a  remark  he  had 
heard  a  typical  old-time  Puritan  (of  a  generation  that  was  even  then  pass- 
ing away)  make  to  the  effect  that  "he  never  looked  out  of  doors  on  Sunday 
morning  to  see  what  kind  of  weather  it  was,  but  put  on  his  best  clothes, 
and  when  the  time  came  started  out  for  the  'meeting  '  and  never  failed  to 
get  there."  And  this,  although  he  was  a  very  old  man,  and  lived  three 
miles  from  the  meeting-house,  while  a  degenerated  youngster  living  in 
close  pioximity  to  the  church  (as  we  had  come  to  call  it)  pacified  his  con- 
science by  making  these  verses  on  the  subject.] 

Slowly  unfold  the  mantling  shades  of  night, 

From  off  the  sleeping  world,  and  dimly  now 
In  the  far  east  appears  the  dawning  light, 
In  crescent  flickerings  playing  on  the  sight. 

Anon  the  Sun,  (such  as  to  whom  they  bow, 

Who  the  earth  from  whence  he  comes  inhabit), 

Scatters  'mid  frosty  air  his  quick'ning  rays  ; 
Now  through  the  leafless,  knarled  oak  boughs  they  flit  ; 
Now  on  the  broad,  and  glist'ning  plain  they  sit, 

The  while  to  deepest  dell  the  subtle  essence  strays. 
Forest  and  field  of  Summer  verdure  shorn, 

Last  eve  appeared  all  sombre,  grim,  and  bare  ; 
Lo  !  now  what  spotless  garments  each  adorn  ; 

All  do  the  pure,  and  sky-sent  vestments  wear  ; 
God  of  the  Universe  !  'tis  Thy  holy  morn. 


44 

Forth  from  the  long-roofed  farmstead  house  that  stands 

'Neath  two  giant  elms  come  the  pious  sire  ; 
Provident  first  each  beast  shall  at  his  hands 
Receive  its  morning  fare  ;  a  home-knit  tippet  bands 

His  neck  ;  his  face  unmarked  by  discontent  or  ire 
That  o'er  Ambition's  brow  in  deep-wrought  furrows  steals  ; 
There  sparkles  conscience,  free  from  guilt  or  stain, 

And  from  his  soul  a  song  of  praise  there  peals. 
To  him  to  whom  no  heartfelt  praise  is  vain. 

His  steps  do  make  no  noise,  as  round  he  goes 

With  thrifty  care  to  stable,  pen,  and  fold, 
(Pets  the  meek  cow,  or  checks  the  bullock  bold) 

And  drives  the  frisking  herd  where  yonder  streamlet  flows 
So  clear,  of  old  his  sire  had  there  his  homestead  chose. 

Meanwhile,  within,  the  cheerful  goodwife  hies 

The  breakfast  to  prepare — the  oaken  table  spreads  ; 
'Round  which  full  soon,  with  eager  waiting  eyes, 
The  ruddy  children  group  ;  nor  one  there  sighs 

For  appetite,  nor  ill-digestion  dreads. 

No  formal  grace  in  hurried  phrase. is  said, 

But  ere  they  sit  them  to  their  homely  fare, 
In  solemn  tones  a  holy  chapter  read, 

Precedes  the  earnest  voice  in  lowly  prayer. 

Then  knelt  in  rev'rent,  thankful  silence,  all 
In  hushed  response,  their  father's  God  adore  ; 

Paint  thou  the  scene  whose  pencil  can  recall 

A  fitting  sketch  with  more  than  poet's  power. 

Now  through  the  valley  sounds  the  early  bell, 

That  bids  them  to  the  hamlet  church  repair. 
A  gladsome  sound,  and  musically  swell 
Its  pealing  accents  through  the  quiet  dell, 

Borne  far  and  wide  upon  the  frostj'  air. 
Along  the  road  the  sturdy  yoemen  go, 

Intent  to  worship  in  th'  accustomed  place  to-day. 
Lustily  on  they  press  through  yielding  snow, 

Each  willing  mind  gives  each  an  easy  way. 

No  path  is  there  to  show  the  mortal  eye 

How  oft  those  feet  the  self  same  way  have  trod  ; 
Yet  on  yon  wooded  steep,  uprising  high, 

(As  guiding  praises  on  the  heavenly  road). 

The  tapering  spire  is  pointing  to  the  sky. 

No  marble  steps  lead  to  its  sacred  door ; 
Nor  gothic  archings  to  attract  the  eye  ; 
Nor  hindrance  aught  to  thoughts  that  upward  soar 
Toward  that  blue  vault  beyond  which  evermore 


45 


A  Temple  stands  with  which  no  fane  can  vie. 

Profaner  thou  !  not  this  thy  place  to  come. 
Tread  not  with  haughty  step  the  oak-floored  aisle. 

Vain  babbler  cease  !  and  be  thine  utterance  dumb 
Within  these  walls  that  ne'er  have  echoed  guile. 
But  man  of  God  'tis  thine,  with  humble  mein, 

Communing  there  to  pass  the  holy  hours  ; 
To  quaff  the  drops  by  worldly  gaze  unseen, 

And  feel  refreshing  from  the  Spirit's  showers, 
That  clothe  the  barren  heart  with  veidure  green. 

The  pastor  comes  ;  with  solemn  step  and  slow, 

He  moves  him  to  the  oft  ascended  stair  ; 
Benign  his  look,  and  the  long  locks  of  snow 
Adown  his  neck  in  silver  richness  flow, 

The  aloe  bloom  of  life  serenely  fair. 
'Tis  silent  all — the  pause  of  thinkingi  souls — 
The  space  ere  all  shall  in  accordance  praise  ; 

Till  now  along  the  aisle  the  bidding  rolls, 
Invoking  aid,  their  thoughts  on  high  to  raise. 
Then  songs  go  forth — the  utterance  of  the  heart  ; 

And  prayer  conjoined  full  oft  with  hymning  voice, 
And  hoi}'  words  that  still  new  truth  impart. 

Fall  on  the  heedful  ear,  and  bid  the  heart  rejoice. 

The  service  o'er,  with  grave  but  cheerful  look, 

Each  neighbor  homeward  wends  with  neighbor  near ; 

Of  the  sermon  speaks,  not  by  critic's  book, 

Nor  scans  the  words  for  theologic  crook, 
On  which  a  schism  for  himself  to  rear. 
Contented  he  the  gospel  to  receive, 

E'en  as  'tis  writ,  in  good  and  honest  heart  ; 
And  all  vain  dogmas  to  those  wranglers  leave, 

Who  in  Truth's  essence  have  no  lot  nor  part. 

His  Faith  swerves  not,  but  like  that  constant  star, 

That  steadfast  stands,  though  clouds  and  tempests  low'r, 
And  proud  ships  perish  on  the  rough  lee  shore, 

(By  false  lights  luied),  still  kindly  beams  from  far, 

And  brings  him  safe  to  port  'mid  th'  elemental  war. 

The  even-tide  falls  calmly  on  the  scene  ; 

The  glowing  hearth  a  cheerful  warmth  bestows  ; 
Where  grouped  in  circle,  sire  and  dame  between, 
The  children  sit  demure  in  thoughtful  mien, 

And  watch  by  ruddy  glow  the  daylight  close. 

Unbroken  quiet,  save  that  now  and  then 
Some  truant  wonder  stirs  the  urchin  mind, 

Or  toddling  prattler  leaves  the  chimney  den 


46 


To  climb  his  mother's  knee,  there  sure  to  find 

More  genial  warmth  from  heart  that  throbs  with  love  ; 

Still  nestles  closer  as  his  weary  eyes, 
With  slumber  laden,  strive  in  vain  to  rove  ; 

(Which  every  languid,  drowsy  sense  denies  ;) 
And  all  his  wakeful  efforts  futile  prove. 

Thus  passes  day  ;  from  every  care  withdrawn  ; 

The  city's  din,  the  busy  hum  of  life  ; 

The  God-ordain'd,  calm,  holy  hours  move  on, 
Till  night  proclaims  another  Sabbath  gone, 

And  Time  is  winner  in  the  peaceful  strife. 

The  growing  shades  encircle  all  again  ; 
Night's  Queen  is  ruling  in  the  wintry  sky  ; 

All  hush'd,  like  ghosts,  along  the  whiten'd  plain 

Cloud  shadows  flit  and  vanish  silently. 
Sleep  steals  o'er  all,  and  brings  its  placid  dreams. 

To  whisper  'neath  that  pious  farmstead  roof  ; 
Thrice  happy  he  on  whom  such  radiance  beams  ; 

From  Monarch's  frown,  and  rich  man's  greed  aloof, 
He  quaffs  the  draught  of  life  from  Nature's  purest  streams. 


HISTORICAL  SERMON. 

BY 

REV.  CORNELIUS   L.   KITCHEL,  OF    NEW    HAVEN. 


[Mr.  Kitchel  is  a  descendant  of  Robert  Kitchel,  1639.] 


"By  faith  Abraham,  when  he  was  called,  obeyed  to  go  out  into  a  place 
which  he  was  to  receive  for  an  inheritance;  and  he  went  out  not  knowing 
whither  he  went. — HEBREWS  xi  :  8. 

Just  how  the  call  came  to  Abraham  we  do  not  know.  But 
while  he  was  living  in  Ur  of  the  Chaldees,  God,  in  some  way, 
spake  to  him  and  said:  "Get  thee  out  from  thy  country  and 
from  thy  kindred  and  from  thy  father's  house  unto  a  land  that 
I  will  show  thee." 

To  this  divine  mandate  Abraham  was  not  disobedient.  The 
home  of  his  childhood,  the  home  of  his  fathers  was  dear  to 
him,  but  there  he  could  not  worship  as  he  would  the  one  holy 
and  living  God.  Far  to  the  west,  across  the  deserts,  was  a  land 
where,  unmolested,  he  and  his  children  could  follow  the  dic- 
tates of  their  finer  spiritual  instinct.  The  thought  of  that 
country  whispered  to  his  soul  in  divine  accents.  It  would  not 
let  him  rest.  God  called  him.  A  divine  promise,  large  and 
sure,  beckoned  him.  And  so,  with  a  chosen  company,  he  set 
out  not  knowing  whither  he  went,  knowing  only  that  the  God 
who  called  him  would  lead  him  and  give  him  an  inheritance 
in  the  land  of  promise. 

Since  Abraham's  day  many  children  of  his,  in  spirit,  have 
heard  a  like  call  and  have  left  their  homes  with  a  like  faith, 
but  of  them  all  none  were  truer  descendants  of  the  Father  of 
the  Faithful  than  the  little  company  whose  history  we  are  to 
trace  to-day.  Two  hundred  and  fifty  years  ago  our  ancestors 
who  settled  this  town  were  living,  most  of  them,  in  Surrey 


48 

and  Kent,  those  southern  counties  which  are  called,  for  their 
richness  and  beauty,  the  garden  of  England.  It  was  a  time 
of  ease  and  of  peace  in  temporal  things.  They  were  com- 
fortably provided  with  this  world's  goods  for  their  station,  sur- 
rounded with  relatives  and  friends,  proud  and  fond  of 
England,  their  native  land;  but  a  tyrannical  king  and  a  big- 
oted prelate  forced  upon  them  the  superstitious  observances, 
as  it  seemed  to  them,  of  that  Roman  church  from  which  they 
had  hoped  they  were  free.  They  could  not  conscientiously 
conform  thereto.  If  they  did  not,  fines,  persecutions,  impris- 
onments, exiles,  were  inflicted  upon  them.  They  heard  of  a 
New  England  across  the  sea,  where  others  who  sympathized 
with  them  had  fled  and  found,  as  yet,  freedom  to  worship  God. 
Just  as  surely  as  Canaan  was  a  land  of  promise  to  Abraham, 
New  England  was  to  our  fathers.  God  said  to  them  just  as 
clearly  as  he  did  to  the  ancient  patriarch:  "  Get  thee  out  from 
your  country  and  from  your  kindred  and  from  your  father's 
house."  By  faith,  obeying  that  call,  they  went  out,  a  little 
company,  bidding  good-bye  to  friends  and  native  land,  in 
frail  and  diminutive  vessels,  across  the  perilous  sea,  into  the 
uncultivated  wilderness,  destitute  of  habitation,  haunted  by 
savages,  out  beyond  the  older  settlements,  that  without  per- 
adventure  they  might  be  beyond  the  reach  of  the  tyrant's 
arm,  and  there  in  the  wisdom  of  the  Scriptures  and  of  com- 
mon sense,  in  the  fear  of  God,  they  laid  unique  foundations  of 
a  free  Commonwealth  and  a  free  Church,  from  which,  and 
others  like  them,  as  the  centuries  rolled  on  has  developed  the 
great  nation  in  which  we  dwell.  The  land  to  which  they  were 
called  they  did  afterward  inherit. 

The  text  thus  suggests  the  two-fold  aspect,  namely,  the 
Going  out  in  Faith  and  the  Inheriting  the  Land,  under  which 
we  may  include  the  origin  and  the  development  of  the  Church 
of  Christ  here. 

FIRST  :     GOING    OUT    IN    FAITH. 

Sometime  in  September,  1639  (O.  S.),  certain  planters  of 
this  colony,  seeking  a  habitation,  came  to  Menunkatuck,  as 
the  region  was  called.  Pleased  with  what  they  found,  on  the 


49 

29th  of  September,  articles  of  agreement  were  signed  by  six 
of  them  representing  the  whole  colony,  and  the  sachem  squaw 
who  claimed  ownership.  In  consideration  of  sundry  coats,, 
fathoms  of  wampum,  glasses,  shoes,  hatchets,  etc.,  "the  said 
sachem  squaw  did  sell  to  the  aforesaid  English  planters  all 
the  land  within  the  limits  of  Ruttawoo  (East  River)  and 
Agicomick  river  (Stony  Creek), '•'  the  present  limits  of  Guil- 
ford.  Immediately  after  this  purchase,  before  winter  proba- 
bly, the  whole  company  came  over  from  New  Haven  where 
they  had  disembarked  the  June  preceding,  and  took  possession 
of  lands  near  the  Sound,  "  especially  the  great  plain  south  of 
the  town,"  which  the  historian  tells  us  had  been  "  already 
cleared  and  enriched  by  the  natives."  While  the  little  com- 
munity is  getting  itself  into  shape,  let  us  ask  who  they  are 
and  how  they  have  been  led  here. 

First  of  all,  we  need  to  note  that  they  are  but  a  little  band 
of  a  vast  company.  It  has  been  computed  that  between  the 
years  1630  and  1640  more  than  20,000  persons  arrived  in 
New  England  from  the  mother  country.  It  was  the  time  of 
Charles  the  First  and  his  Archbishop  Laud,  the  time  of  the 
Star  Chamber  and  High  Commissions.  Many  of  the  mosT 
active  and  most  Godly  ministers  of  the  Church  of  England 
with  their  congregations,  though  they  loved  their  "  dear 
mother  Church,"  as  they  did  not  cease  to  call  her,  could  not 
conform  to  the  superstitious  ceremonies  arbitrarily  prescribed, 
and  as  non-conformists,  fled  to  New  England. 

One  such  minister  was  Henry  Whitfield,  of  Ockley  in  Sur- 
rey, who  became  the  leader  and  pastor  of  the  company  which 
settled  in  Guilford.  Cotton  Mather,  in  his  Magnalia,  tells  of 
him  that  he  was  educated  to  be  a  lawyer,  "  first  at  the  Uni- 
versity and  then  at  the  Inns  of  Court.  But  the  gracious  and 
early  operation  of  the  Holy  Spirit  on  his  heart  inclined  him 
rather  to  be  a  preacher  of  the  Gospel."  For  twenty  years  he 
was  a  conformist,  but  as  the  result  of  an  interview  with  Rev. 
John  Cotton  (afterward  pastor  at  Boston)  and  Rev.  John 
Davenport  (afterward  pastor  at  New  Haven),  both  of  whom 
for  their  non-comformity  were  later  compelled  to  fly,  first  to 
Holland  and  thence  to  New  England,  "  Whitfield  embraced  a 


50 

modest  secession,"  as  Cotton  Mather  phrases  it.  Summoned 
once  and  again  before  the  archbishop's  court,  and  becoming 
liable  to  censure,  no  longer  able  "  to  proceed  in  the  public 
exercise  of  his  ministry,"  he  resigned  his.  rich  living,  sold  his 
personal  estate  and  became  the  leader  of  these  Surrey  and 
Kent  farmers.  They  knew  his  piety  and  his  ability  from 
missionary  work  he  had  done  among  them,  and  "  felt  they 
could  not  do  without  his  ministry."  Like  him,  too,  they  con- 
sidered affairs  at  home  were  hopeless,  and  duty  called  them  to 
lay  new  foundations  for  Christ's  kingdom  beyond  the  sea. 

Two  other  men  of  this  little  colony  we  need  to  note.  One 
of  them,  William  Leete,  was  afterward  magistrate  here  in 
Guilford,  then  Governor  of  New  Haven  Colony,  later  deputy 
Governor  of  the  United  Colony  of  Connecticut,  and  later  still 
for  several  years  Governor  of  Connecticut,  by  annual  election 
till  he  died.  The  decided  and  excellent  quality  of  this  man 
appeared  early.  He  is  the  only  member  of  this  little  colony 
except  Mr.  Whitfield  whose  experience  in  England  Cotton 
Mather  tells  us  of. 

The  other  notable  person  was  Samuel  Desborough,  whose 
brother  married  the  sister  of  Oliver  Cromwell,  and  who  in 
later  years  under  the  Lord  Protector  was  Keeper  of  the  Great 
Seal  of  Scotland,  training  for  which  high  office  he  had  in 
being  one  of  the  seven  pillars  of  the  church  and  magistrate 
here  in  Guilford  before  yet  he  returned  to  England. 

Around  these  men  as  leaders  gathered  the  sturdy  farmers 
of  Kent  and  Surrey,  young  men,  most  of  them,  we  are  told, 
forty  planters  in  all,  and  embarking  from  London  in  May, 
1639,  in  two  vessels  probably,  began  their  long  voyage  of 
forty-nine  days  across  the  Atlantic. 

Now  in  regard  to  this  company,  note  that  while  they  were 
not  organized  as  a  church,  yet  they  were  distinctively  a  reli- 
gious community,  whose  leader  was  their  pastor  and  whose 
"Design  was  Religion."  Their  main  object  was  not  adven- 
ture, nor  trade,  nor  the  improvement  of  their  personal  estates. 
They  were  indeed  of  that  great  race  in  whose  blood  has  ever 
been  a  readiness  to  brave  danger,  and  I  do  not  deny  that  they 
were  sagacious  and  thrifty  men  bound  to  do  as  best  they 


could  for  their  families  and  estates,  but  first  of  all  they  did 
seek  the  Kingdom  of  God  and  His  righteousness.  Listen  to 
what  they  declare  four  years  later  when  they  were  about  to 
form  their  civil  government  :  "The  mayne  ends  which  were 
propounded  to  ourselves  in  our  coming  hither  and  settling 
down  together  are,  that  we  may  settle  and  uphold  the  ordi- 
nances of  God  in  an  explicit  Congregational  Church  way 
with  most  purity,  peace  and  liberty  for  the  benefit  both  of 
ourselves  and  posterity  after  us." 

They  landed  at  New  Haven  probably  toward  the  end  of 
June.  Sometime  before  the  29th  of  September,  they  held 
their  first  meeting  of  which  we  have  any  record,  in  Mr  New- 
man's barn  in  New  Haven,  and  agreed  that  the  lands  called 
Menunkatuck  should  be  purchased  for  them  and  their  heirs, 
"the  deed-writings  thereabout  to  be  made  and  drawn  in  the 
name  of  these  six  planters  in  our  steads,  viz  :  Henry  Whit- 
field,  Robert  Kitchel,  William  Leete,  William  Chittenden, 
John  Bishop,  and  John  Coffinge." 

These  six  planters  as  directed,  purchased  the  land,  and 
the  little  colony  of  about  two  hundred  souls  we  may  sup- 
pose, as  has  been  before  narrated,  came  over  from  New  Ha- 
ven before  winter  and  the  history  of  this  community  began. 

And  now  for  nearly  four  years,  until  June  iQth,  1643,  when 
the  church  was  first  formally  instituted,  but  little  is  recorded. 
That  they  nourished  a  vigorous  religions  and  devotional  life 
in  all  this  period  of  patient  waiting,  as  we  should  otherwise 
suppose  is  indicated  also  by  the  fact  that  midway  in  it,  in 
1641,  the  Rev.  John  Higginson  was  called  as  "teacher"  to 
assist  Mr.  Whitfield,  the  pastor,  in  his  work.  Why  they  did 
not  organize  a  church  at  once,  we  can  only  conjecture.  Most 
likely  they  felt  less  need  of  such  organization,  because  they 
were,  as  it  were,  a  church  already.  Not  only  was  Mr.  Whit- 
field,  their  leader,  a  regular  clergyman  whose  ordination  they 
accepted  and  never  had  repeated  (as  was  done  in  the  case  of 
Mr.  Davenport  at  New  Haven  and  others),  but  many  of  them 
had  enjoyed  his  ministrations  in  their  former  homes,  and  one 
of  them,  Mr.  Thomas  Norton,  had  been  warden  of  Mr.  Whit- 
field's  church  at  Ockley. 


52 

That  they  kept  the  formation  of  a  church  steadily  in  view 
is  evident  from  this  record  of  an  agreement  made  at  a  meet- 
ing of  the  planters  held  Feb.  2d,  1642,  at  a  time  when  the 
need  of  some  more  explicit  kind  of  civil  government  appears 
first  to  have  found  expression  :  "  It  is  agreed  that  the  civil 
power  of  administration  of  justice  and  preservation  of  peace 
shall  remain  in  the  hands  of  Robert  Kitchel,  William  Chit- 
tenden,  John  Bishop  and  William  Leete,  formerly  chosen  for 
that  work,  until  some  may  be  chosen  out  of  the  church  that 
shall  be  gathered  here" 

How  long  this  indeterminate  condition  of  Church  and  State 
would  have  continued,  had  not  some  impulse  come  from  with- 
out, it  would  bi  difficult  to  say.  Such  an  impulse,  however, 
did  come  in  the  spring  of  1643,  at  which  time  it  became 
necessary,  owing  to  the  breach  then  existing  between  king 
and  Parliament,  for  the  colony  here  to  combine  with  New 
Haven  and  the  other  New  England  colonies  for  the  sake  of 
security.  But  in  order  to  do  this,  it  was  necessary  that  Guil- 
ford  should  adopt  some  definite  civil  constitution  and  form  of 
government,  and  as  in  their  idea,  the  civil  government  was  to 
be  the  creature  of  the  church,  the  church  itself  must  be  first 
definitely  organized  that  it  might,  in  turn,  call  the  civil  body 
into  existence. 

Accordingly  on  June  iQth,  1643,  the  first  step  was  taken 
by  choosing  seven  men  to  be  the  "seven  pillars."  These 
seven  pillars  were  the  pastor  Henry  Whitfield,  his  assistant 
and  son-in-law  John  Higginson,  Samuel  Desborough,  Wil- 
liam Leete,  Jacob  Sheaffe,  John  Mipham  and  John  Hoadley. 
This  was  in  accordance  with  the  method  pursued  in  New 
Haven  four  years  before,  at  the  suggestion  of  Rev.  John 
Davenport,  the  pastor  there,  who  derived  this  method  of  ec- 
clesiastical organization  from  the  text :  "  Wisdom  hath 
builded  her  house,  she  hath  hewn  out  her  seven  pillars." 
This  may  seem  to  us  rather  heroic  homiletics,  but  practically 
at  that  time  it  met  the  case.  These  Christians  in  the  wilder- 
ness had  cut  loose  from  the  ancient  foundations.  They  were 
feeling  for  the  simplicity  of  the  early  Church  which  gathered 
about  Christ  as  the  only  foundation,  and  practically  they  at- 


53 

tained  it.  Yet,  members  as  they  were  of  the  ancient  Church 
of  England,  it  must  have  satisfied  their  imagination  and  filled 
a  void  in  their  hearts,  to  have  something  to  join.  These  seven 
godly,  Christian  men,  choicest  of  the  whole  band — these  seven 
pillars,  in  some  unconscious  way  and  with  a  sort  of  Scriptural 
sanction  stood  to  them,  we  cannot  doubt,  in  place  of  the 
goodly  battlements  of  that  great  historic  Church  from  which 
they  never  separated,  but  from  which  they  were  now  cutting 
loose. 

These  seven  elect  men  first  drew  up  a  "Doctrine  of  Faith," 
the  same  used  in  the  First  Church,  till  in  1837  it  was  some- 
what amended.  To  this  they  formally  assented  and  then 
entered  into  covenant  with  God  and  each  other.  Thus  was 
laid  the  foundation.  Then  the  other  members  joined  them- 
selves to  these  seven  pillars  by  making  the  same  profession 
and  covenant  and  the  church  was  fully  gathered  and  estab- 
lished. 

Of  the  newly  organized  church  Mr.  Whitfield  continued 
to  be  pastor  just  as  he  had  been  of  the  colony  from  the  be- 
ginning. It  would  seem  that  he  was  never  formally  chosen 
pastor  by  the  church  nor  installed,  probably  because  for  sev- 
eral years  he  had  actually  been  their  pastor  and  in  the  work 
and  was  a  regularly  ordained  clergyman. 

Rev.  John  Higginson  was  also  continued  as  "teacher." 
He  preached  one-half  day  every  Sabbath  and  had  charge  of 
the  public  school.  The  office  of  ruling  elder,  which  existed 
in  New  Haven  and  other  New  England  churches  was  not 
adopted  here.  Neither  were  deacons  chosen  either  in  Mr. 
Whitfield's  or  Mr.  Higginson's  ministry,  that  is,  for  nearly  a 
quarter  of  a  century.  Three  men  were  chosen  annually  who 
collected  the  minister's  maintenance,  and  managed  the  tem- 
poralities of  the  church  like  vestrymen  in  the  Church  of 
England.  To  the  church  thus  constituted  the  four  planters 
who  had  been  entrusted  with  the  control  of  affairs  until  a 
church  should  be  gathered,  resigned  their  trust  and  by  the 
church  thus  organized  the  civil  polity  of  the  plantation  was 
thereupon  established. 


54 

In  that  civil  polity  the  feature  which  now  seems  most  pecu- 
liar, and  for  which  the  church  is  justly  held  responsible,  is 
the  provision  that  only  church  members  should  be  voting 
citizens.  This  is  fully  expressed  in  the  constitution  which 
the  church  drafted  for  the  civil  government  now  to  be  set  up 
by  it.  It  reads:  "We  do  now  therefore  all  and  every  of  us 
agree,  order  and  conclude  that  only  such  planters  as  are  also 
members  of  the  church  here  shall  be  and  be  called  freemen 
and  that  such  freemen  only  shall  have  power  to  elect  magis- 
trates, deputies  and  other  officers  of  public  interest,  or  author- 
ity in  matters  of  importance,  concerning  either  the  civil  affairs 
or  government  here,  from  amongst  themselves  and  not  else- 
where." In  a  word,  only  church  members  could  vote  or  be 
voted  for. 

What  our  fathers  thus  did  was  with  entire  unanimity,  in 
accordance  with  the  high  purpose  that  actuated  them,  to  erect 
a  miniature  republic  in  which  the  good  should  rule.  They 
thought  they  had  found  who  the  good  were,  namely,  those 
who  by  a  regenerating  faith  had  become  members  of  the  true 
Church  of  Christ.  So  they  established  a  popular  government 
with  a  "piety  qualification" — not  property  nor  learning  but 
personal  character  should  be  the  test  of  citizenship. 

That  such  were  the  motives  that  induced  our  fathers  to 
thus  limit  citizenship  appears  very  clearly  in  a  treatise  writ- 
ten at  that  time,  probably  by  Rev.  John  Dapenport  (though 
ascribed  on  its  title  page  to  John  Cotton),  entitled  "A  Dis- 
course about  Civil  Government  in  a  New  Plantation  whose 
Design  is  Religion."  In  this  note  the  Sixth  Argument, 
(which  doubtless  underlay  all  the  rest)  namely :  "The 
danger  of  devolving  this  (civil)  power  upon  those  not  in 
church  order."  When  Mr.  Davenport  came  to  the  Massa- 
chusetts colony  on  his  way  to  New  Haven,  he  found  that  they 
in  Massachusetts  had  seven  years  before  (May  i8th,  1631) 
limited  citizenship  in  the  same  way.  They  had  done  so  in 
part  because  they  were  afraid  that  otherwise  emissaries  of  the 
King,  or  of  Laud,  might  gain  entrance  into  their  councils. 
The  same  danger  existed  here  and  they  sought  to  escape  it  in 
the  same  way. 


55 

But  fear  was  not  their  only  motive  in  thus  limiting  citizen- 
ship. It  seemed  to  them  also  in  the  highest  degree  expedi- 
ent. The  fifth  argument  in  the  pamphlet  above  referred  to 
reads:  Where  citizenship  "is  committed  to  those  who  are 
furnished  with  the  best  helps  for  securing  to  a  Christian  state 
the  faultless  discharge  of  such  a  trust,  is  the  best  form  of 
government  in  a  Christian  commonwealth  and  which  men 
that  are  free  to  chuse  (as  in  new  plantations  they  are)  ought 
to  establish."  In  their  view  government  was  not  a  right  but 
a  trust,  and  should  be  committed  to  those  who  would  fault- 
lessly discharge  it.  Such,  they  thought,  were  those  who  feared 
God.  It  would  be  difficult  to  pack  into  so  few  words  so  many 
just  principles  of  political  science.  That  government  should 
be  by  the  governed,  yet  not  by  all.  That  the  franchise  is  the 
right  of  those  only  who  can  rightly  use  it.  That  some  test 
of  qualification  must  be  imposed,  and  that  test  should  be  per- 
sonal character.  These  were  the  ideas  our  fathers  embodied 
in  their  constitution.  For  which  of  them  need  we  apologize? 
It  is  easy  for  us  now  to  see  that  piety  itself  would  be  endan- 
gered by  making  the  profession  of  it  an  opportunity  for  civil 
power  and  privilege.  But  to  our  fathers  their  religious  expe- 
perience  was  a  real  and  an  awful  thing.  That  men  could  trifle 
with  or  prostitute  it  for  temporal  advantage  did  not  occur  to 
them.  They  "wrought  in  a  sad  sincerity,"  and  this  is  the  worst 
any  man  can  say  of  them.  But  a  higher  motive  than  either 
fear  or  expediency  actuated  our  fathers  in  thus  limiting  citi- 
zenship. Above  all,  it  seemed  to  them  right.  "To  make  the 
Lord  God  our  governor  is  the  best  form  of  government." 
"That  which  giveth  unto  Christ  his  due  preheminence  is  the 
best  form  of  government."  So  read  the  first  and  second 
arguments  in  Mr.  Davenport's  pamphlet. 

Just  here  something  should  be  said  in  vindication  of  the 
independence  of  Guilford  in  all  its  early  history.  Take,  for 
instance,  this  limiting  citizenship  to  church  members.  This 
was  a  practice  almost  universal  in  the  colonies  of  New  En- 
gland at  that  time,  Hartford  being  peculiar  in  not  accepting 
it.  Guilford  accepted  it  as  a  result  of  the  situation,  not  be- 
cause New  Haven  did,  and  in  her  own  way.  It  is  only  mem- 


56 

bers  in  the  church  here,  not  church  members  anywhere,  who 
could  vote,  and  with  a  moderation  and  justice  which  appear 
often  in  her  annals,  the  Guilford  constitution  provides  that  all 
planters,  whether  church  members  or  not,  have  a  voice  in  the 
general  courts  or  town  meetings  "when  the  division  of  lands, 
the  enactments  of  bye  or  town  laws  and  such  matters  were 
attended  to." 

In  another  and  very  admirable  way  our  fathers  here  exhib- 
ited an  independent  civic  sense.  They  never  rejected  or 
made  light  of  the  common  law  which  they  had  brought  with 
them  from  the  mother  country.  They  had  a  deep  regard  for 
it.  There  is  no  allusion  in  our  records  (says  Mr.  Smith)  such 
as  appears  in  those  of  New  Haven  and  -Milford,  indicating 
any  idea  of  dispensing  with  the  rules  of  common  law.  They 
always  "used  it  in  contracts,  civil  injuries  and  rules  of  court." 
What  they  did  was  in  all  criminal  cases  to  make  the  judicial 
laws  of  God,  as  delivered  by  Moses,  the  rule  "for  all  the 
courts  of  this  jurisdiction."  So  they  did  not  retain  the  pen- 
alties enacted  by  the  parliament  of  Great  Britain,  thus  cut- 
ting down  the  number  of  capital  offenses  from  thirty-one  to 
twelve. 

Having  thus  seen  the  church  at  Guilford  with  wisdom  con- 
structing and  establishing  the  civic  government,  let  us  descend 
to  affairs  more  domestic  and  enquire  in  regard  to  the  church 
building  at  first  erected.  The  time  of  its  building,  it  appears 
to  me,  is  indicated  by  the  fact  that  it  was  of  stone  and  had  a 
thatched  roof,  as  we  judge  from  the  record  in  1651  :  "The 
meeting  house  appointed  to  be  thatched  and  clayed  before 
winter,"  showing  that  stones  laid  in  clay  were  the  material 
used.  Now  buildings  in  stone  like  Mr.  Whitfield's  house  and 
some  others  were  doubtless  the  earliest  built  here,  the  settlers, 
before  they  had  discovered  the  manifold  uses  of  the  abundant 
timber  about  them,  making  their  houses  of  stone  and  thatch- 
ing them  just  as  they  hao  done  in  England.  '  The  name 
"Clapboard  Hill "  perhaps  being  given  to  the  place  and  at 
the  time  when  first  "  cleft  boards  "  were  substituted  for  stone 
and  thatch.  This  "  stone  age,"  we  may  suppose,  passed  by 
very  soon,  and  the  church  erected  in  it  was  probably  one  of 


57 

the  very  first  buildings  provided,  just  as  we  should  expect 
from  the  prominence  religious  worship  had  in  this  community. 
Until  it  was  constructed,  we  are  told  that  Mr.  Whitfield's 
house,  which  would  thus  appear  to  have  been  built  first,  was 
"  fitted  up  with  folding  partitions,"  so  as  to  afford  a  place  for 
public  meeting  on  the  Sabbath.  In  1645,  we  find  in  the  town 
records  :  "  Ordered,  that  no  more  trees  be  cut  down  in  front 
of  the  meeting  house."  Meeting  house,  it  was  called,  because 
in  it  the  town  meetings  were  held  as  well  as  public  worship, 
the  town  meeting  being  composed  of  church  members  who 
came  together  as  truly  in  a  religious  spirit  to  serve  God  in  the 
business  of  the  Court  as  in  the  ordinances  of  the  Church.  The 
first  meeting  house  stood  about  the  middle  of  the  north  end 
of  the  green,  was  twenty-four  or  twenty -five  feet  square,  and 
had  four  roofs  coming  to  a  point  in  the  centre. 

The  people  were  gathered  to  worship  by  beat  of  drum,  for 
the  fear  of  attack  by  Indians  kept  this  people  martial.  Every 
Sunday,  reads  the  law  of  the  colony,  "  a  fourth  part  of  the 
trained  band  in  every  plantation  shall  in  their  course  come 
constantly  to  the  worship  of  God  every  Lord's  Day  and  (such 
as  can  come)  on  lecture  days  ;  to  be  at  the  meeting  house  at 
latest  before  the  second  drum  hath  left  beating."  The  drum 
was  used  to  assemble  the  people,  until  in  1724  a  bell  was  pur- 
chased. Once  in  the  meeting  house,  the  men  sat  on  one  side 
of  the  room  the  women  on  the  other,  until  in  1713,  when  a 
new  meeting  house  was  built,  a  special  vote  was  passed  that 
"  men  and  women  sit  together  in  the  meeting  house  in  the 
pews."  But  even  then  and  till  a  much  later  day  and  probably 
at  first,  seats  were  assigned  by  a  special  committee,  according 
to  "  age  and  the  lists,"  as  the  order  reads. 

About  the  meeting  house  was  the  burying  ground,  where 
one  by  one  as  they  finished  their  earthly  career,  the  "fore- 
fathers of  the  hamlet  slept."  President  Dwight,  when  he 
journeyed  through  Guilford  in  1800,  found  the  green  about 
the  meeting  house  still  used  in  this  way,  and  discourses  on 
the  undesirability  of  the  practice.  In  1817,  the  gravestones 
and  monuments  were  removed  to  the  new  cemeteries,  about  a 
mile  on  either  side  east  and  west  of  the  village. 


58 

In  1650,  the  church  and  colony  met  with  a  severe  loss  in 
the  return  to  England  of  their  pastor,  Mr.  Whitfield.  Origin- 
ally the  wealthiest  of  all  the  planters,  he  found  his  estate 
much  exhausted  by  helping  his  people  in  their  settlement 
while  he  supported  a  numerous  family  mainly  at  his  own  ex- 
pense, as  the  people  were  poor.  Meanwhile  he  received  press- 
ing invitations  to  return  to  England,  where  the  Commonwealth 
had  been  established.  Says  Mr.  Ruggles:  "  He  was  properly 
the  father  of  the  plantation  ;  lov'd  his  flock  tenderly  and  was 
extremely  belov'd  by  them."  As  a  preacher,  also,  he  was 
most  acceptable,  "  delivering  himself  with  a  peculiar  dignity, 
beauty  and  solemnity."  When  the  time  came  for  him  to 
leave,  the  church  and  congregation  accompanied  him  to  the 
water's  side,  as  the  elders  did  Paul  at  Miletus,  "  with  many 
tears."  After  his  return  to  England  he  appears  to  have  fin- 
ished his  life  in  the  ministry  at  the  city  of  Winchester. 

In  the  following  year,  1651,  went  Mr.  Samuel  Desborough, 
who  must  have  been  a  great  loss  to  the  church  in  which  he 
was  one  of  the  seven  pillars,  and  to  the  community  whose 
magistrate  he  had  been  from  the  beginning.  Mr.  John  Hoadly, 
another  one  of  the  seven  pillars,  afterward  chaplain  to  Crom- 
well's garrison  in  Edinburgh  Castle,  and  grandfather  of  the 
much  more  famous  Bishop  Hoadly,  went  two  years  later,  1653, 
with  several  others,  while  those  who  continued  in  Guilford, 
"  on  account  of  the  persuasion  that  in  a  short  time  they 
should  all  follow  their  pastor,"  did  not  or  could  not  purchase 
his  property,  which  he  offered  them  upon  very  low  terms. 

When  Mr.  Whitfield  left,  Mr.  Higginson  became  sole  pastor 
for  eight  years,  till  1659,  when  he  sailed  for  England,  but  the 
vessel  being  forced  into  Salem  by  contrary  winds  he  was  set- 
tled there  as  pastor  for  more  than  forty  years. 

Between  1659  and  1664  there  was  no  settled  pastor  here, 
but  in  the  latter  year  Rev.  Joseph  Elliott,  son  of  the  Rev. 
John  Elliott,  pastor  of  Roxbury,  who  is  called  frequently  the 
Apostle  to  the  Indians,  was  called  and  happily  settled.  "As 
a  preacher  Mr.  Joseph  Elliott  is  said  to  have  been  inferior  to 
none  in  the  age  in  which  he  lived,  and  he  was  a  burning  and 
shining  light  in  this  community."  Under  his  dispensation  it 


59 

was  that  the  colonies  of  New  Haven  (of  which  Guilford  was 
a  part)  and  Connecticut  were  united.  The  people  of  Guilford 
must  have  taken  sides  strongly  in  the  this  controversy.  The 
churches  of  New  Haven  colony  were  all  deeply  concerned  in 
it,  for  union  with  Connecticut  meant  the  doing  away  with  the 
provision  that  only  church  members  were  freemen,  as  the 
Connecticut  colony  had  never  adopted  it.  In  the  Connecticut 
colony  also,  the  Half-way  Covenant  was  allowed,  which 
seemed  objectionable  to  the  New  Haven  people.  For  these 
and  other  reasons  of  a  more  worldly  sort,  New  Haven  remon- 
strated and  resisted  for  a  series  of  years,  but  at  last  was 
forced  to  yield  for  fear  if  she  did  not,  that  the  Royal  Commis- 
sion lately  come  from  England,  if  they  appealed  to  it,  would 
attach  them  to  the  arbitrary  government  of  the  Duke  of 
York,  who  claimed  by  royal  grant  from  the  Connecticut  river 
westward.  So  in  1665  New  Haven  and  Connecticut  became 
one  colony. 

This  union  of  the  New  Haven  colony  with  Connecticut  was 
the  end  of  the  distinctively  heroic  period  of  Guilford  and  New 
Haven.  An  effort  was  made  by  our  fathers  to  maintain  a 
government  in  which  God  should  be  ruler,  and  Jesus  Christ 
should  have  "the  preheminence  which  is  His  due."  In  their 
secluded  situation  under  these  hallowed  influences,  a  rarely 
pure  and  noble  community  had  sprung  up  and  was  in  thriving 
condition  when  the  great  world  current  swept  in  upon  and 
over  them  and  reinstated  the  secular  order.  The  note  was 
pitched  too  high  ;  it  could  not  be  held.  The  fair  splendor  of 
that  roseate  dawn  "fades  into  the  light  of  common  day." 
From  this  time  on  is  the  second  period  of  Guilford's  ecclesi- 
astical history  which  in  the  phraseology  of  the  text  we  may 
call: 

SECOND  :       INHERITING     THE     LAND. 

Let  us  rapidly  observe  how  as  the  years  passed  by  what 
had  been  the  little,  heroic,  early  church  increases  and  colo- 
nizes, and  how  in  due  season  also  arise  here  churches  of 
other  names  and  order  until  at  length  we  arrive  at  the  situa- 
tion as  we  find  it  to-day. 


6o 

First,  we  note  that  in  the  pastorate  of  Thomas  Ruggles 
Sr.,  who  had  succeeded  Mr.  Elliott  (died  1694)  in  1695,  East 
Guilford  became  a  separate  Ecclesiastical  Society.  The  farm- 
ers to  the  east  had  patiently  and  faithfully  come  the  long  way 
till,  in  1703,  they  felt  strong  enough  to  start  out  for  them- 
selves. The  history  of  this  church,  eldest  and  sturdiest 
daughter  of  its  mother,  has  been  recited  to-day  by  its  hon- 
ored pastor  in  Madison,  but  East  Guilford  it  was  till  1826, 
and  may  justly  claim  a  share  in  this  history  in  all  its  most 
honorable  and  interesting  period. 

Next,  we  find  that  in  171 1,  in  spite  of  having  recently  colo- 
nized, the  Mother  Church  had  so  grown  as  to  need  a  new  and 
larger  meeting  house  than  the  original  twenty-five  foot 
square  stone  one.  Accordingly,  a  large  wooden  church  was 
erected  about  the  center  of  the  green,  south  of  the  old  school 
house.  It  was  sixty-eight  feet  long  and  forty-five  feet  wide, 
three  stories  high,  with  double  galleries.  Later,  in  1726,  a 
steeple  one  hundred  and  twenty  feet  high  was  added  to  shelter 
the  bell  lately  purchased.  At  the  same  time  a  clock  was  made 
for  it  and  given  to  the  society.  It  is  claimed  that  this  Meet- 
ing house  was  the  first  in  Connecticut  equipped  with  steeple, 
bell  and  clock.  The  old  clock,  the  same  old  clock  I  am  told, 
is  still  ticking  above  our  heads,  but  that  Meeting  House  was 
snperceded  by  the  present  structure,  which  was  dedicated 
May  igth,  1830. 

In  1720  yet  another  colony  went  out.  The  people  of  North 
Guilford  (at  first  called  Cohabit)  were  incorporated  as  an  Ec- 
clesiastical Society  by  act  of  legislature  in  that  year  and  built 
a  house  of  worship  in  1723.  This  was  the  Third  Society,  East 
Guilford  being  the  second. 

Still  a  Fourth  Society,  whose  territorial  limits  were  the  same 
as  those  of  the  old  First  Society,  came  into  existence  under 
the  following  circumstances.  The  elder  Ruggles  died  in 
1728  and  was  succeeded  in  1729  by  his  son,  Rev.  Thomas 
Ruggles  Jr.  The  latter  was  not  acceptable  to  a  large  mi- 
nority (twenty-nine  out  of  eighty  male  communicants),  who 
claimed,  in  the  words  of  Trumbull,  that  he  was  "not  such  a 
distinguishing,  experimental  and  animating  preacher  as  they 
desired."  So  they  withdrew  and  established  public  worship 


6i 

by  themselves.  They  erected  a  church  building  on  a  lot 
facing  the  north  end  of  the  green  in  1730,  but  it  was  not 
until  1/33,  after  many  unsuccessful  attempts  of  councils  and 
committees  appointed  by  the  legislature  to  reconcile  them  to 
their  brethren,  that  they  were  constituted  by  Act  of  General 
Assembly  a  separate  society.  Through  all  this  controversy 
the  interesting  fact  appears  that  "both  parties,"  in  the  words  of 
a  report  of  a  committee  of  the  General  Assembly  in  1742, 
"declare  themselves  to  be  of  the  Congregational  principles, 
religiously  adhering  to  the  (Cambridge)  platform  printed  in 
1649."  The  First  Society  in  a  powerfully  written  protest  to 
the  General  Assembly  against  its  authorizing  the  dissenters 
to  become  a  distinct  society,  probably  drawn  up  by  Mr.  Rug- 
gles.  objecting  to  a  council  called  in  this  matter  not  by  the 
churches  but  by  the  General  Assembly,  say  that  "this 
church  did  dissent  from  (and  not  unite  with)  the  churches" 
established  in  accordance  with  the  Saybrook  Platform  in 
1708..  As  a  matter  of  fact,  this  church  never  was  Consoci- 
ated.  Its  Congregationalism  has  been  pure  from  the  time 
when  the  infant  colony,  still  on  shipboard,  declared  that  its 
"mayne  end"  in  coming  hither  was  "to  uphold  the  ordinance 
of  God  in  an  explicit  Congregational  Church  way." 

In  reference  to  the  Fourth  Society  let  us  briefly  say  that 
after  having  had  four  pastors,  its  membership  having  become 
diminished  by  death  and  removal,  in  1810  sixteen  persons 
were  returned  to  the  First  Society,  by  an  act  of  legislature, 
while  still  others  united  themselves  with  a  Baptist  Society 
which  arose  about  that  time. 

In  the  days  of  the  Junior  Ruggles  we  have  also  to  note  the 
formation  into  an  Episcopal  Church  of  those  in  Guilford  who 
were  "conformists  to  the  Church  of  England."  This  was 
done  by  Rev.  Mr.  Lyons,  under  the  auspices  of  the  "Society 
for  the  Propogation  of  the  Gospel  in  Foreign  Parts,"  in  1744 
and  three  years  later,  in  1747,  St.  John's  in  North  Guilford 
was  organized.  A  few  years  before  this  the  great  revival, 
which  began  at  Northampton,  Mass.,  under  Jonathan  Ed- 
wards and  was  promoted  by  Whitfield  and  Tennant,  had 
taken  deep  hold  of  Connecticut  and  part  of  the  town  of 
Guilford,  says  Dr.  Trumbull,  "was  visited  in  a  most  gracious 


62 

manner."  Without  doubt  under  its  influence  a  higher  style 
of  piety  arose  in  the  churches,  yet  some  more  conservative 
people,  who  wanted  the  sacraments  from  which  the  "relation 
of  experiences"  had  excluded  them,  found  refuge  in  the 
Church  of  England.  At  any  rate,  Jonathan  Edwards  said  in 
1751  that  that  Church  had  increased  three  fold  in  New 
England.  The  Episcopal  .Church  in  Guilford  beginning  under 
these  conditions,  two  years  later  (in  1746)  voted  to  erect  a 
church  building,  which  was  opened  in  1750  by  Rev.  Samuel 
Johnson,  D.  D.  This  building  was  on  the  green  (and  was  the 
last  building  left  standing  on  it),  a  little  west  of  the  present 
Christ  Church,  which  was  consecrated  in  1838.  During  the 
Revolutionary  War  the  church  edifice  suffered  from  plunder 
and  decay  and  the  congregation  became  almost  extinct  till 
1793.  In  1805  and  1806  considerable  accessions  were  re- 
ceived from  the  First  Society,  about  the  time  of  some  dissat- 
isfaction with  the  Rev.  Mr.  Brainerd,  for  Mr.  Ruggles,  Jr., 
died  in  1770,  as  did  his  colleague,  Rev.  Amos  Fowler,  in 
1800.  Mr.  Israel  Brainerd  then  succeeded  to  the  pastorate  of 
the  First  Church,  from  which  he  was  dismissed,  not  with- 
out friction,  in  1806,  at  which  time  began  the  notable  pastor- 
ate of  Rev.  Aaron  Button.  We  are  told  that  in  the  first 
three  years  of  Mr.  Button's  ministry  one  hundred  and  fifty 
persons  united  with  the  church  on  profession  and  more  than 
six  hundred  during  his  whole  pastorate. 

We  may  not  pass  over  the  fact  that  in  1808  a  Baptist 
Church  of  nineteen  members  was  organized  here,  some  of 
whom  were  friends  of  Rev.  Mr.  Brainerd,  aggrieved  by  his  re- 
moval from  the  pastorate  of  the  First  Church,  while  others  of 
them  had  been  members  of  the  old  Fourth  Society,  which,  as 
has  been  stated,  went  to  pieces  just  at  this  time.  Elder 
Alvah  Goldsmith  was  made  pastor  in  1823  and  in  1826  they 
numbered  thirty-six  members,  but  since  then  seem  to  have 
dwindled  away. 

Much  more  considerable  is  the  body  of  Methodists,  which 
was  first  organized  in  1837,  though  as  far  back  as  1789  Jesse 
Lee,  the  apostle  of  Methodism,  had  preached  at  Ebenezer 
Hopson's,  in  Boston  street,  and  later,  in  1811,  Bishop  Asbury 
was  here. 


63 

These  various  religious  bodies,  not  springing  genetically 
from  the  First  Church,  we  recognize  to-day  as  meeting  the 
spiritual  wants  of  many  whom,  from  one  cause  or  another, 
Congregationalism  does  not  satisfy,  and  members  each  of  the 
one  body  of  Christ.  All  honor,  too,  in  its  proper  religious 
sphere,  to  the  growing  body  of  Roman  Catholics  who  organ- 
ized as  a  parish  in  1860,  received  a  resident  pastor  first  in 
1887,  and  now  have  a  congregation  numbering  in  all  more 
than  two  hundred. 

It  is  too  soon  for  the  historian  profitably  to  review  the  cir- 
cumstances attending  the  dismission  of  Rev.  Aaron  Button 
from  the  pastorate  of  the  First  Church  in  1842,  which  resulted 
in  the  organization  of  the  Third  Church  in  1843.  But  every 
true  friend  of  the  Church  of  Christ  in  this  community,  and 
every  loyal  admirer  of  the  early  history  of  this  town,  cannot 
but  regret  that  this  ancient  church  ever  had  to  be  rent  in 
twain.  May  it  not  be  hoped  that  in  due  time  and  with  due 
regard  to  every  proper  feeling  there  may  be  again  here,  as  at 
first,  but  one  church  of  the  Congregational  name  and  order. 

I  have  not  time  to  review  the  record  of  the  recent  rectors 
and  pastors  of  these  various  churches.  They  are  inscribed 
upon  their  respective  archives  and  the  more  recent  of  them 
in  the  memory  and  affections  of  their  people.  They  need 
no  characterization  from  me.  Yet  we  cannot  at  this  time 
pass  without  mention  the  name  of  Dr.  Bennett.  God  did  not 
spare  that  beloved  and  honored  man  to  be  with  us  this  day. 
But  his  gracious  figure  has  vanished  so  recently  that  he  seems 
still  to  be  here,  where  for  forty  years  he  lived  and  labored  so 
faithfully.  He  rests  from  his  labors  and  his  works  do  follow 
him. 

In  closing,  let  us  gratefully  praise  God  for  the  inheritance 
into  which  he  has  led  His  people  in  all  these  fair  and  goodly 
churches,  and  for  the  varied  streams  of  blessing  which,  spring- 
ing from  one  head,  have  flowed  out  so  widely. 

Let  us  pray  that  a  measure  of  the  heroic  faith  which  in- 
spired our  fathers  to  go  out  "not  knowing  whither  they 
went"  may  likewise  urge  us,  their  children,  to  a  like  faith- 
fulness in  all  the  duties  to  which  our  God  calls  us. 


ADDRESS. 
EDUCATION  IN  GUILFORD  AND  MADISON. 

BY 

REV.   JAMES  L.  WILLARD,  D.  D. 


[Dr.  Willard  is  a  descendant  of  Thomas  Willard,   1689,  and  Nathan 
Bradley,   ^658.] 


It  was  on  a  bright  May  day,  about  the  noon  of  the  month, 
that  there  came  to  me,  from  your  worthy  Secretary,  a  letter, 
in  which  it  was  written,  "Will  you.  give  us  an  address  of 
twenty-five  minutes  on  Sunday  evening,  September  8,  upon 
Education  in  Guilford  ?"  My  first  thought  was  to  say,  "  Pleaae 
excuse  me."  My  second  thought  was  to  hold  the  matter  in 
brief  abeyance  for  further  consideration.  And  my  third 
thought,  after  a  gentle  rebuke  from  your  genial  Chairman, 
was,  "  I  will  try  and  do  it." 

And  having  been  born  in  Guilford  East  that  was,  and  tided 
over,  while  young  and  tender,  into  the  Madison  that  now  is, 
there  seemed  to  be  a  two-fold  reason  why  I  should  take  some 
humble  part  in  the  Celebration  of  the  Two  Hundred  and  Fif- 
tieth Anniversary  of  the  original  town. 

EDUCATION. 

Were  1  to  read  to  you  Webster's  definition  of  this  word, 
and  also  that  of  Worcester,  it  would  take  up  more  time  than 
one  could  spare,  while  trying  to  condense  himself  into  twenty- 
five  minutes.  I  must,  then,  be  content  to  say,  that  education, 
like  a  tree,  has  root,  trunk,  boughs.  Take  good  care  of  the 


65 

root,  and  the  trunk  will  be  sound  ;  and  the  boughs  will  be  full 
of  fruit.  Did  the  men  of  other  days,  who  breathed  the  great 
sea  wind  that  swept  in  over  the  waters,  look  well  to  this 
thing  ?  They  did.  And  education,  to  their  minds,  meant 
more  than  reading  ;  more  than  spelling  ;  more  than  geogra- 
phy ;  more  than  arithmetic.  It  meant  the  complete  develop- 
ment of  the  entire  man,  by  the  culture  of  those  faculties  that 
give  strength,  energy,  objective  force  in  all  right  directions. 
But  they  of  the  olden  time,  and  they  also  of  more  recent  days, 
knew  that  the  root  principle  must  receive  much  of  its  needed 
strength  from  good  schools  and  good  books.  And,  as  Senator 
Hawley  said  at  Milford,  "  When  there  was  any  great  thing  to 
be  done,  our  fathers  had  their  town  meetings  and  got  the 
'  sense  of  the  meetin'. ' '  And  that  sense  they  made  prac- 
tical. 

Hence,  on  page  80  of  the  history  of  Guilford,  from  the 
manuscripts  of  Hon.  Ralph  D.  Smith,  we  have  this  record: 
"  Schools  were  established  probably  as  early  as  the  establish- 
ment of  the  church,  1643.  They  were  formerly  supported 
like  the  clergyman,  by  a  tax."  At  a  town  meeting  holden  the 
7th  of  October,  1646,  a  committee  was  appointed  of  three  men 
to  collect  the  contributions  for  the  salaries  of  Mr.  Whitfield 
and  Mr.  Higginson,  and  it  was  ordered  that  the  additional 
sum  towards  Mr.  Higginson's  maintenance  with  respect  to 
the  school  shall  be  paid  by  the  treasurer  yearly  out  of  the  best 
of  the  rates  in  due  season  according  to  our  agreements."  From 
that  time  forward  Guilford  has  been  favored  with  good  and 
true  men, 

"  Fit  to  instruct  her  youth." 

Fener,  Belamy,  Pitman,  Collins,  Elliott,  Ward,  Dudley,  John- 
son,— these  are  names  that  appear  on  the  printed  page,  as 
having  been  teachers  prior  to  the  year  1794,  "  when  the  pres- 
ent system  of  school  districts  was  adopted  in  Connecticut." 

In  November,  1824,  the  Lancasterian  method  was  inaugur- 
ated. This  was  continued  for  about  five  years,  and  then  given 
up.  Among  its  teachers  we  may  name  Dr.  Alvan  Talcot  and 
Mr.  Samuel  Robinson. 

But,  while  methods  change,  the  good  work  goes  on.     From 


66 

1831  to  1837,  Mr.  R.  D.  Smith,  Mr.  Luman  Whedon  and  Mr. 
Julius  N.  Dovvd,  each,  in  the  order  named,  seeks 

"  To  rear  the  tender,  thought, 
To  teach  the  young  idea  how  to  shoot, 
To  pour  the  fresh  instruction  o'er  the  mind, 
To  breathe  the  enliv'ning  spirit,  and  to  fix 
The  generous  purpose  in  the  glowing  breast." 

Years  wear  away,  and  another  step  is  taken  in  the  right 
direction.  Mrs.  Sarah  Griffing,  widow  of  Hon.  Nathaniel 
Griffing,  and  Hon.  Simeon  B.  Chittenden,  both  open  their 
hearts  and  hands  for  one  and  the  same  purpose,  and  that  is, 
to  promote  the  cause  of  sound  learning.  September  3,  1855, 
a  building,  known  as  "  The  Guilford  Institute,"  had  been  com_ 
pleted,  and  was  opened  with  suitable  public  exercises,  and 
addresses  by  Rev.  E.  Edwin  Hall,  S.  B.  Chittenden  and 
others. 

In  T737>  a  library  was  formed  in  the  towns  of  Guilford,  Say- 
brook,  Killingworth  and  Lyme.  But,  before  the  close  of  that 
century,  Guilford,  in  the  course  of  events,  had  a  library  of  its 
own.  And  I  only  state  what  many  know,  that  her  people 
were  then  and  are  now,  a  reading  people,  believing  with  Car- 
lyle,  that  "  All  that  mankind  has  done,  thought,  gained  or 
been,  is  lying  as  in  magic  preservation  in  the  pages  of  books." 
Or  with  Coleridge,  that  "  It  is  saying  less  than  the  truth  to 
affirm  that  an  excellent  book  is  like  a  well-chosen  and  well- 
tended  fruit  tree.  Its  fruits  are  not  of  one  season  only.  With 
the  clue  and  natural  intervals,  we  may  recur  to  it  year  after 
year,  and  it  will  supply  the  same  nourishment  and  the  same 
gratification,  if  only  we  ourselves  return  to  it  with  the  same 
healthful  appetite." 

And  if  it  be  true — and  in  my  judgment  it  is  true — that  the 
root  principles  of  education  are  largely  in  good  schools  and 
in  good  books,  it  is,  I  am  sure,  none  the  less  true  that  for 
these  two  hundred  and  fifty  years  Guilford  has  not  only  held 
fast  to  the  conditions  named,  but  both  alike  have  grown  with 
her  growth  and  strengthened  with  her  strength.  The  spirit 
evoked  from  her  schools  and  her  books  has  thoroughly  pene- 
trated and  permeated  the  minds  of  the  people.  And  out  of 


67 

this  has  come  a  common  thought  power,  more  to  be  desired 
than  gold — yea,  than  much  fine  gold.  The  root,  the  trunk 
the  boughs  of  education  are  all  here  and  have  been  here  right 
through  the  generations.  Hence  we  look  tor  fruit  and  are  not 
disappointed. 

No  one  can  ride  or  walk  through  this  goodly  town  and  not 
say  to  himself  and  others,  "What  pleasant  homes !"  "How 
beautiful  for  situation!"  'Tis  true  that  education  did  not 
create  these  Guilford  acres,  nor  coax  the  sea  to  kiss  their  face 
through  all  the  rolling  ages,  but  aesthetic  culture  has  done 
much  to  make  that  face  more  inviting  and  to  adorn  the  whole 
body  with  grace  and  beauty.  The  rude  and  unsightly  touch 
that  comes  of  ignorance  and  illiteracy  has  not  made  its  mark 
on  your  door  posts,  nor  on  your  public  green,  nor  has  it  left 
its  debris  on  the  green  hill  or  on  the  pebbled  beach.  The 
outward  forms  of  objective  beauty  seem  to  say,  "This  is  an 
educated  people." 

Passing  now  to  social  life,  "Behold  how  good  and  how 
pleasant  it  is  for  brethren  to  dwell  together  in  unity."  But 
such  conditions  are  rare  and  not  many  behold  it.  A  defective 
education  is  sure  to  develop  an  unhealthy  social  atmosphere, 
full  of  little  annoyances  and  discomforts,  and  this  will  gener- 
ate bitterness,  and  envy,  and  strife.  But  where  a  long  line  of 
educational  forces  has  been  nerved  with  common  sense,  and 
these  have  become  quickening  entities  in  the  minds  of  the 
people,  there  the  social  atmosphere  is  clear  and  bracing.  The 
sun  never  disputes  about  its  orbit.  No  more  does  genuine 
worth.  A  star  never  asks  to  shine  by  another  star's  light. 
No  more  do  deserving  men  and  women  ask  recognition  be- 
yond their  merit.  And  a  culture  that  can  produce  this  state 
of  things  has  in  it  a  rich  and  praiseworthy  excellence.  And 
good  it  is  to  know  that  your  social  atmosphere  is  pure  and 
sweet  and  inviting,  free  from  the  jealousies  and  rivalries  that 
pertain  to  half-educated  minds. 

Should  one  think  and  say  that  education  has  but  little  to 
do  in  moulding  and  shaping  the  social  element  another  might 
think  and  say  that  rain,  and  dew,  and  sunshine  have  but  little 
to  do  in  the  matter  of  corn,  and  grass,  and  roses.  But  such 


68 

thinking  and  such  speaking  would  be  contrary  to  the  nature 
of  things,  and  no  more  so  in  the  one  case  than  in  the  other. 
And  am  I  not  right  in  averring  that  pleasant  homes  and 
social  health  owe  much  to  education  ? 

Another  fact  to  be  considered  is  that  of  the  high  character 
and  distinguished  worth  of  many  whose  early  training  was  in 
your  schools  and  in  reading  your  books. 

What  could  be  said  of  a  sky  without  sun,  or  moon,  or 
stars?  And  what  could  be  said  of  a  town  without  men  intel- 
lectually bright?  Happily  for  you,  these  latter  have  not  been 
wanting.  Some  have  kept  their  homes  here,  others  have 
moved  out  to  occupy  places  of  trust  and  honor.  But,  whether 
remaining  here  or  going  elsewhere,  they  were  "burning  and 
shining  lights."  And  when  the  people  of  to-day  recall  their 
names,  what  wonder  if  hearts  thrill  and  pulse  as  though 
touched  by  some  spirit  of  ancestral  joy  ?  And  should  it  be 
asked,  "  What  grows  in  this  old  town  ?"  one,  with  a  slight 
metonomy  of  words,  may  answer: 

"  Man  is  the  nobler  growth  our  realms  supply, 
And  minds  are  cultured  in  our  Guilford  sky." 

I  cannot  pause  here  to  go  over  the  roll  of  honor  and  relate 
the  deeds  that  each  has  done.  Enough  to  say  that  the  dead 
wrought  nobly  in  their  day  and  generation  and  that  the  living 
are  worthy  sons  of  worthy  sires.  But  they  and  you  were  and 
are  largely  indebted  to  early  training.  And  in  that  training 
the  teacher  and  the  book  each  had  its  part.  And  if  I  cannot 
say  just  what  the  acorn  needs  in  order  to  evolve  a  tree  that 
will  become  the  monarch  of  the  woods,  and  cannot  say  just 
what  the  child  needs  in  order  to  become  a  great  and  noble 
man,  I  can  say  that  the  soil  in  which  the  acorn  is  has  much 
to  do  with  the  future  oak,  and  the  educational  training  that  a 
child  receives  has  much  to  do  with  the  future  man  or  woman. 
It  was  Alexander  Pope  who  said: 

"  Tis  education  forms  the  common  mind; 
Just  as  the  twig  is  bent,  the  tree's  inclined." 

The  boy  understood  this  who,  when  asked,  "  Why  is  a  cer- 
tain tree  crooked  ?"  replied,  "  I  suppose  somebody  stepped  on 


69 

it  when  it  was  a  little  fellow."  It  is  clear,  I  think,  that  Guil- 
ford  has  not  stepped  on  her  children,  but  has  uniformly  sup- 
plied the  conditions  of  a  straight  and  healthy  growth.  And 
that  has  brought  rejoicing  to  their  homes  and  joy  to  their 
hearts.  And  still  the  roots  go  down,  and  the  trunk  expands, 
and  the  boughs  bear  better  and  better  fruit.  And  the  people 
act  not  as  though  they  had  already  attained,  either  were 
already  perfect,  but  as  those  having  a  purpose  in  their  hearts 
to  go  forward,  right  forward.  Education,  to  the  dwellers  in 
this  town,  is  a  thing  that  lives  and  moves.  It  has,  as  one  said 
of  religion,  no  blind  eye,  no  deaf  ear,  no  dumb  tongue,  ho 
withered  hand,  no  lame  foot.  And  education,  says  Dr.  James 
Walker,  "  does  not  consist  in  putting  things  into  the  mind, 
but,  as  the  name  implies,  in  bringing  things  out — in  the  devel- 
opment of  the  power  and  habit  of  self-activity,  self-reliance, 
and  self-government  ;  and  to  effect  this  object,  the  faculties 
on  which  these  traits  depend  must  be  stimulated,  exercised, 
and  put  to  the  stretch."  The  inhabitants  of  Guilford  seemed 
to  have  learned  this,  and  to  have  been  rewarded  by  enrolling 
among  their  children  many  who  attained  to  eminence  and 
high  distinction. 

And  here  may  I  digress  a  moment,  and  ask,  would  it  be 
strange  should  Madison  (East  Guilford)  be  to  me  "  the  one 
place  on  all  the  earth  that  I  love  most  dearly?"  There  I  first 
saw  the  light  ;  there,  in  long  summer  days,  I  followed  old 
roads  that  wind  through  meadows  and  over  hills  ;  there  I 
knew  every  little  nook  and  bay  where  the  tides  come  in  ; 
there  I  listened  to  the  morning  and  evening  song  of  birds, 
and  climbed  trees  that  I  might  find  out  what  those  songsters 
had  laid  away  in  their  nests  ;  there  I  gathered  wild  flowers  in 
wood  and  dell ;  there  I  heard  the  solemn  tolling  of  the  bell 
when  neighbor  or  friend  had  died,  and  more  than  once,  in  the 
awful  stillness,  I  fancied  that  tLe  Day  of  Judgment  was  near 
at  hand.  It  all  comes  back  to  me  now,  and  was  a  part  of  my 
education. 

But,  returning  to  my  theme,  of  Madison,  it  may  be  said, 
"  She  is  the  daughter  of  a  worthy  mother,"  and  shares  with 
her  in  the  elder  day  glory.  For  more  than  six  decades  she 


;o 

has  walked  alone,  though  not  unmindful  of  the  lessons  that  she 
had  already  learned.  These  have  been  to  her  "like  apples  of 
gold  in  pictures  of  silver."  When  a  part  of  the  mother  be- 
came a  child  again,  those  who  remained  with  the  child  still 
kept  to  their  former  training.  In  their  eyes,  the  school- master 
was  an  imposing  personage.  And  many  a  timid  boy  felt  the 
force  of  words  to  which  Oliver  Wendell  Holmes  has  given 
such  fit  expression  : 

"  Grave  is  the  master's  look  ;  his  forehead  wears 
Thick  rows  of  wrinkles,  prints  of  worrying  cares." 
Uneasy  lies  the  heads  of  all  that  rule, 
His  worst  of  all  whose  kingdom  is  a  school  ; 
Supreme  he  sits  ;  before  the  awful  frown 
That  binds  his  biows,  the  boldest  eye  goes  down; 
Not  more  submissive  Israel  heard  and  saw 
At  Sinai's  feet  the  Giver  of  the  Law." 

Among  my  early  teachers  in  the  then  new  town  of  Madison, 
were  Luman  Whedon,  Frederick  Dowd,  Thomas  Dowd,  and 
still  later,  at  Lee's  Academy,  Samuel  Robinson,  Theodore  A. 
Leete,  William  Wallace  Wilcox,  John  R.  Freeman,  Richard 
E.  Rice.  Will  any  other  men  ever  seem  to  me  so  great  as 
did  these  men  ?  Never.  Will  any  other  presence  ever  awe 
me  as  did  their  presence  ?.  Never. 

What  now  are  the  lessons  ?  That  was  a  true  saying, 
"Honor  is  purchased  by  the  deeds  we  do."  And  it  is  a  pleas- 
ant fact  that  the  instructors  of  our  youth  have  been  among 
the  best  and  wisest  of  mankind.  Of  our  really  great  men, 
whether  dead  or  living,  nearly  all  were,  at  some  period  in  their 
lifetime,  teachers.  And  never  did  their  light  shine  more 
sweetly,  or  more  to  the  benefit  of  others,  than  while  in  that 
orbit.  They  have  done  their  work  and  gone  away.  "  Their 
little  life  is  rounded  with  a  sleep."  In  quiet  churchyards, 
among  the  gentle  hills,  or  on  the  plains  "  cool  with  bowering 
trees,"  they  rest  from  their  labors,  but  their  works  do  follow 
them.  And  "  to  live  in  hearts  we  leave  behind  is  not  to  die." 
And  from  the  days  of  Socrates  until  now,  there  have  been 
those  to  keep  the  memory  of  their  teachers  green,  and  to 


thank  God  for  the  gift  of  these  to  men.     And  to-day  we  give 
faithful  living  teachers  a  warm  place  in  our  hearts. 

"  We  grapple  them  to  the  soul  with  hooks  of  steel." 

We  assign  to  them  a  place  of  honor  than  which  none  can 
be  higher  in  all  the  earth. 

"  God's  prophets  of  the  useful 
These  teachers  are." 

And,  to  borrow  a  sentence  from  Isabella  Mayo,  "All  the 
long  course  of  their  lives  is  marked  by  other  lives  lifted  up." 
And  why  may  we  not  say  of  them,  as  Dr.  Butler  did  of 
strawberries,  doubtless  God  could  make  a  better  berry  but 
doubtless  God  never  did.  And  so  if  God  could  have  made  a 
better  class  of  men  and  women  than  those  who  have  been  the 
educators  of  our  youth,  doubtless  he  never  did.  These  are 
they  who,  in  their  gentle  moods,  teach  our  children  to  find 
"  tongues  in  trees,  books  in  the  running  brooks,  sermons  in 
stones  and  good  in  everything."  These  are  they  whose  words 
melt  into  young  and  docile  minds  and  inspire  them  to  noble 
purpose  and  high  endeavor.  These  are  they  who  have  found 
the  level  and  the  fulcrum,  and  with  this  combination  are 
moving  the  world.  And  not  to  hold  such  in  high  regard 
would  be  a  mark  of  great  ingratitude. 

A  second  lesson  is,  or  should  be,  one  of  thankfulness  for 
good  books.  Dr.  Channing, writing  of  self-culture,  says:  "It 
is  chiefly  through  books  that  we  enjoy  intercourse  with  supe- 
rior minds.  In  the  best  books  great  men  talk  to  us,  give  us 
their  most  precious  thoughts,  and  pour  their  souls  into  ours." 

And  that  is  a  good  book,  says  Alcott,  "  which  is  opened 
with  expectation  and  closed  with  profit."  And  in  their 
reading  the  people  of  Guilford  have  exemplified  the  saying  of 
Carlyle,  "If  time  is  precious,  no  book  that  will  not  improve  by 
repeated  readings  deserves  to  be  read  at  all."  And  also  the 
saying  of  Bacon,  "  Some  books  are  to  be  tasted,  others  to  be 
swallowed  and  some  few  to  be  chewed  and  digested."  More- 
over, they  have  and  do  believe  in  those  apothegms,  one  of 
which  declares  that  "Knowledge  is  power,"  and  the  other  that 


72 

"  Ignorance  is  the  curse  of  God."  Hence,  your  tree  of  knowl- 
edge, planted  so  long  ago,  is  very  strong  and  very  fruitful. 
Recently,  one  with  his  own  Hand  shook  down  a  million  dol- 
lars from  a  branch  which  he  himself  had  grafted  in. 

And,  Mr.  Chairman,  we  claim  this  as  a  Madison  branch. 
And  inasmuch  as  my  wife,  on  her  mother's  side,  is  a  member 
of  the  Hand  family,  I,  for  one,  shall  do  all  that  is  possible  to 
retain  the  branch.  And  to  the  people  of  Madison  let  me  say, 
"  See  to  it  that  you  keep  the  donor's  memory  green  and  be 
thankful  to  God  that  He  gave  you  such  a  man.  You  have  in 
the  new  academy  one  of  his  embodied  thoughts,  and  all  over 
that  South  Land  have  dropped  his  multitudinous  thoughts 
like  so  many  sunbeams  of  the  ever  blessed  God.  He  had 
read  the  wail  of  the  prophet,  who  said  "  My  people  are  de- 
stroyed for  lack  of  knowledge."  And  to  him  it  was  given  to 
see  another  people  in  like  condition,  and  the  eye  pitied  and  the 
Hand  helped.  Grand  old  man  !  "  Dear  to  God  and  famous  to 
all  ages."  By  his  great  gift  shall  knowledge  be  increased, 
and  "knowledge,"  said  Daniel  Webster,  "is  the  great  sun  in 
the  firmanent.  Life  and  power  are  scattered  with  all  its 
beams."  Did  the  sun  stand  still  upon  Gibeon,  making  the  light 
of  one  day  as  of  two?  And  did  that  great  sun  ot  which 
Webster  speaks,  when  it  came  up  to  your  meridian,  stand 
still  and  then  scatter  with  its  beams  a  double  portion  of  life 
and  power?  I  know  it  is  not  popular  nowadays  to  believe 
in  miracles,  but  you  do  not  claim  any  such  high  help  in  those 
educational  forces  which,  under  God,  have  done  so  much  for 
you  and  yours.  But  you  do  both  believe  and  claim  that  the 
fathers  and  mothers  of  this  Connecticut  town  did  run  well, 
and  that  you,  their  children,  do  not  propose  to  grow  weary  in 
the  race.  A  blessed  light,  a  sweet  light,  a  light,  warm  and 
rich  and  mellow,  came  out  of  the  sky  that  hung  over  the  past} 
and  the  future,  I  am  sure,  is  hopefully  bright.  The  long 
line  of  educators  who  have  already  done  such  noble  work  is 
not  yet  at  an  end.  The  chain  has  not  been  broken  nor  do  the 
links  gather  rust.  The  brightness  brightens,  the  strength 
strengthens,  the  glory  is  more  and  more  resplendent. 

"  I  know  not  what  the  future  hath  ;"  no  man  can  know,  but 


73 

I  believe,  with  Emerson,  that  we  cannot  overestimate  our 
debt  to  the  past.  And  while  good  men  and  true  men  have 
been  found  in  all  the  walks  of  life,  among  farmers,  mechan- 
ics, merchants,  soldiers,  sailors,  manufacturers,  bankers, 
lawyers,  doctors,  clergymen,  statesmen,  still,  we  have  it  in 
our  hearts  to  say  that  none  have  done1  more  than  the  teach- 
ers of  our  youth  to  keep  strong  and  safe  the  foundations  of 
our  civil  and  religious  liberty.  Should  a  monument  be 
erected  to  their  memory,  and  all  worthy  names  incribed 
thereon,  broad  acres  would  be  needed  for  its  base  and  its 
highest  summit  would  be  the  first  to  catch  and  the  last  to  lose 
the  golden  rays  that  the  orb  of  day  shoots  forward  and  back- 
ward over  the  earth.  And  there  it  would  stand,  telling  out  to 
men  a  lesson  clear  as  the  noon,  sweet  as  the  light,  grand  as 
the  eternal  hills  of  the  everlasting  God. 

And  now,  O  Guilford  by  the  murmuring  sea!  by  the  waters 
that  roll  and  sparkle  in  the  golden  light,  fair  and  comely  as 
fashioned  by  the  hand  of  God  !  may  I  say  to  mother  and 
daughter,  being  in  part  the  child  of  both,  in  the  sweet  summer 
time  open  your  gates  wide  and  welcome  the  stranger  in,  and 
finding,  as  he  will,  much  that  is  beautiful  for  the  eye  to  look 
upon,  it  will  be  pleasant  for  you  to  know  that  he  will  also  find 
that  broad  and  generous  culture  which  bespeak  to  any  ob- 
serving mind  a  well  educated  people.  And  if  it  was  an  honor 
once  for  man  or  woman  to  say,  "  I  am  a  Roman  citizen,"  why 
not  make  it  an  honor,  through  all  the  coming  ages,  for  one  to 
say,  "  I  was  born  and  educated  in  Guilford,  Connecticut !" 

And  may  "  the  Lord  bless  thee,  and  keep  thee  ;  the  Lord 
make  his  face  to  shine  upon  thee  and  be  gracious  unto  thee  ; 
the  Lord  lift  up  his  countenance  upon  thee  and  give  thee 
peace."  And  may  it  be  said  of  your  children,  and  children's 
children,  as  Wilberforce  said  of  flowers,  "They  are  the  smiles 
of  God's  goodness." 


ADDRESS. 
CONGREGATIONAL    MINISTERS, 

I!Y 

REV.    CHARLES    E.    STOWE,    HARTFORD,    CONN. 


[Mr.  Stoweisa  descendant  of  Andrew  Ward  (1690)  and  John  Meigs  (1654).] 


The  topic  assigned  me  by  your  committee  is  the  "  Congre- 
gational Ministers  of  Guilford  and  Madison."  I  have  been 
assured  that  neither  laborious  investigations  nor  elaborate 
treatment  is  desired.  I  consequently  make  no  pretentions 
as  to  the  freshness  of  my  material,  or  as  to  my  originality  in 
the  manner  of  its  treatment.  I  can,  in  fact,  do  little  more 
than  gives  names  and  dates,  interspersed  with  a  few  scattered 
remarks  concerning  individual  peculiarities  or  excellencies. 

First,  let  me  say  a  few  words  as  to  the  genesis  of  the 
Guilford  churches: 

The  First  Church  in  Guilford  was  organized  in  1643,  under 
the  pastorate  of  the  Rev.  Henry  Whitfield.  In  May,  1703, 
by  act  of  the  General  Assembly,  the  society  of  East  Guilford 
was  formed  and  the  Second  Church  organized  under  the  pas- 
torate of  the  Rev.  John  Hart,  Farmington.  In  June,  1725, 
the  society  of  North  Guilford  was  formed  and  the  Third 
Church  organized,  with  Rev.  Samuel  Russell  of  Branford, 
pastor. 

In  the  year  1729,  after  the  death  of  Rev.  Thomas  Ruggles, 
Sr.,  there  arose  a  very  serious  disturbance  in  the  First 
Church  and  parish  over  the  settlement  of  a  minister,  Rev. 
Thomas  Ruggles,  Jr.,  the  son  of  the  former  pastor.  Upwards 


75 

of  fifty  members  of  the  church  and  parish  withdrew  and 
assembled  for  public  worship,  under  the  ministrations  of  the 
Rev.  Mr.  Ward,  and  the  same  time  petitioning  the  General 
Assembly  that  they  might  be  set  apart  as  a  separate  parish 
and  no  longer  compelled  to  pay  for  the  support  of  a  minister 
to  whom  they  were  bitterly  opposed.  The  matter  was  re- 
ferred to  a  committee  by  the  General  Assembly,  which 
reported  unfavorably  on  the  petition.  But,  through  their 
persistence,  the  petitioners  at  last  gained  their  end,  and  the 
Fourth  Ecclesiastical  Society  was  organized  May  10,  1733, 
Rev.  Edmund  Ward  being  the  first  pastor  of  the  church. 

June  3,  1757,  the  society  of  North  Bristol  was  organ- 
ized and  (March  23,  1757,)  the  Fifth  Church  in  Guilford  be- 
gan its  existence,  under  the  ministry  of  Rev.  Richard  Ely. 

The  town  of  Madison,  incorporated  in  1826,  embraces  in 
its  limits  the  territory  formerly  included  within  the  Second 
and  Fourth  Ecclesiastical  Societies.  North  Madison  is  what 
was  formerly  known  as  North  Bristol.  The  old  Fourth 
Church  of  Guilford  has  not  been  in  existence  within  the 
present  century,  the  last  minister,  Rev.  Beriah  Hotchkin, 
having  been  dismissed  about  1794  on  account  of  the  inability 
of  the  church  to  longer  support  a  minister. 

From  what  has  been  said,  it  is  clear  that  an  account  of  the 
Congregational  ministers  of  Guilford  and  Madison  must  in- 
clude the  ministers  of  the  First  Church  of  Guilford,  the 
church  in  Madison  and  North  Madison,  the  old  extinct  Fourth 
Church  in  Guilford  and  the  new  Third  Church,  organized  in 
1843.  I  shall  proceed  in  chronological  order,  beginning  with 
Mr.  Henry  Whitfield,  the  first  pastor  of  the  First  Church. 

HENRY    WHITFIELD,    1637-1650. 

Mr.  Whitfield  was  the  son  of  an  eminent  lawyer  and  de- 
signed by  his  father  for  a  legal  profession.  The  natural  bent 
of  his  mind,  however,  caused  him  at  length  to  enter  the  es- 
tablished Church  of  England  as  minister  in  Ockley,  in  Sur- 
rey. For  twenty  years  he  conformed  to  all  the  usages  of  the 
established  church.  At  the  same  time,  however,  he  had  a 
strong  and  manifest  sympathy  for  non-conformists,  which  very 


76 

soon  caused  him  to  be  bitterly  persecuted  by  Archbishop 
Laud.  The  crisis  was  reached  upon  Whitfield's  refusing  to 
read  the  Book  of  Sports.  He  resigned  his  living,  disposed  of 
his  private  estate,  and  came  to  New  Haven  with  Theophilus 
Eaton  in  1637.  Soon  after  his  arrival  he  commenced  the 
settlement  of  the  town  of  Guilford.  He  was  evidently  the 
leading  spirit  in  the  settlement,  a  man  of  substance,  ability, 
and  weight  of  character,  whose  presence  here  has  been  ma- 
terialized and  perpetuated  in  a  most  appropriate  manner  in 
what  is  known  as  the  Old  Stone  House.  For  about  twelve 
years  he  continued  to  exercise  his  ministry  among  this  peo- 
ple, returning  to  England  upon  the  establishment  of  the 
commonwealth. 

He  was  succeeded  by  his  son-in-law,  Rev.  John  Higginson, 
1650  to  1659.  Mr  Higginson  was  born  in  Claybrook,  En- 
gland, August  6,  1616.  In  1629  he  arrived  in  Salem  with  his 
parents,  his  father,  Rev.  Francis  Higginson,  being  the  first 
pastor  of  the  church  in  that  place.  Of  his  early  life  and  ex- 
periences we  know  comparatively  little,  except  that  he  joined 
the  church  at  13  years  of  age,  that  he  pursued  his  theological 
studies  under  Rev.  Thomas  Hooker  of  Hartford,  and  that  at 
the  age  of  twenty,  during  the  Pequot  war,  he  was  chaplain  of 
the  fort  at  Say  brook.  In  1641  he  was  engaged  as  a  teacher 
in  a  school  at  Hartford  and  intimately  associated  with  Thomas 
Hooker,  a  large  number  of  whose  sermons  he  copied  for 
publication.  In  1643  ne  came  to  Guilford  as  Mr.  Whitfield's 
assistant,  and,  as  I  have  already  said,  on  Mr.  Whitfield's  re- 
turn to  England,  he  took  full  charge  of  the  church.  In  1659 
he  determined  to  follow  his  father-in-law  to  England.  The 
ship  in  which  he  embarked  put  into  Salem  on  account  of 
baffling  winds,  and  there  his  father's  people  surrounded  him 
and  besought  him  to  remain  with  them  and  become  their  min- 
ister. Yielding  to  their  entreaties,  he  became  their  pastor, 
remaining  with  them  until  his  death  in  1708 — a  period  of 
fifty -seven  years. 

After  Mr.  Higginson's  departure,  the  church  seems  to  have 
been  in  a  somewhat  amorphous  state  for  some  years.  At  one 
time,  greatly  elated  at  the  prospect  of  securing  the  Rev.  In- 


77 

crease  Mather,  but  doomed  to  disappointment.  At  last,  in 
1664  or  1665,  the  church  settled  the  Rev.  Joseph  Elliot,  son 
of  the  Rev.  John  Elliot,  apostle  to  the  Indians,  as  its  pastor. 

REV.   JOSEPH    ELLIOT,     1664-1694. 

Joseph  Elliot  was  born  at  Roxbury,  Mass.,  December  20, 
1638.  He  graduated  from  Harvard  College  in  the  class  of 
1658. 

After  his  graduation  he  began  to  fit  himself  for  missionary 
work  among  the  Indians.  November  23,  1662,  he  was  settled 
by  unanimous  vote  as  a  teacher  of  the  church  in  North 
Hampton,  of  which  Eleazer  Mather  was  then  pastor.  For  a 
year  or  so  he  assisted  Mr.  Mather  in  the  ministry,  but  was 
not  ordained.  About  1664  or  1665  he  was  settled  in  Guil- 
ford,  Conn.,  where  he  continued  till  his  death,  which  occurred 
May,  1694.  The  homestead  and  farm  owned  and  occupied 
by  Mr.  Elliot  is  still  in  the  hands  of  his  immediate  descend- 
ants, among  whom  is  numbered  the  poet,  Fitz  Green  Halleck. 
As  the  Old  Stone  House  remains  an  enduring  monument  of 
the  solid,  four-square  character  of  Mr.  Henry  Whitfield,  so, 
indeed,  a  venerable  pear  tree,  which  bore  fruit  until  1865, 
when  it  was  blown  down  by  a  storm,  may  be  regarded  as  a 
significant  testimonial  to  the  fruitfulness  of  Mr.  Elliot's  pres- 
ence here. 

There  is  but  one  universal  testimony  as  to  Mr.  Joseph 
Elliot's  excellencies  of  character.  He  does  not  seem  to  have 
been  in  any  sense  a  great  man,  nor  a  man  of  brilliant  parts, 
but  rich  in  all  that  best  part  of  a  good  man's  life,  his  little 
unremembered  acts  of  kindness  and  love. 

The  Rev.  Jared  Elliot  of  Killingworth,  son  of  Mr.  Joseph 
Elliot,  seems,  on  the  other  hand,  to  have  been  a  man  of  de- 
cided genius,  illustrating,  perhaps,  the  idea  that  genius  fre- 
quently skips  a  generation. 

Mr.  Joseph  Elliot  was  succeeded,  in  1694,  by  Mr.  Thomas 
Ruggles,  son  of  Mr.  John  Ruggles  of  Roxbury,  Mass.,  repre- 
sentative to  the  General  Court  of  Massachusetts  in  1658,  1660 
and  1661.  He  was  born  in  1655,  graduated  at  Harvard  College 


78 

in    1690,  ordained   at   Guilford,  Conn.,  November   20,    1695, 
and  died  June  i,  1728. 

He  was  succeeded  by  his  son,  Rev.  Thomas  Ruggles,  born 
at  Guilford,  November  27,  1704,  graduated  at  Yale  College  in 
1723.  It  is  not  known,  so  far  as  I  could  ascertain,  with  whom 
he  pursued  his  theological  studies.  The  ordination  of  Rev. 
Mr.  Ruggles,  as  I  have  already  said,  was  the  cause  of  a  bitter 
quarrel  in  the  church.  In  his  manuscript  History  of  Con- 
necticut Mr.  Ruggles,  speaking  of  his  father's  pastorate  as  on 
the  whole  peaceful  and  prosperous,  adds  that  during  that  time 
were  sowed  the  seeds  of  dissension  which  were  afterwards 
fruitful  of  so  much  evil.  Mr.  Ruggles'  powers  failing,  the 
Rev.  Amos  Fowler  was  settled  as  his  colleague,  and  afterwards 
became  his  successor. 

REV.    AMOS     FOWLER,     1758. 

A  native  of  Guilford,  was  graduated  at  Yale  College  1753, 
was  ordained  colleague  pastor  with  Rev.  Thomas  Ruggles  of 
the  First  Church  in  Guilford.  Died  February  10,  1800,  aged 
seventy-two. 

Leaving  now  for  a  time  the  ministers  of  the  First  Church, 
let  us  turn  our  attention  to  those  of  the  old  Fourth  Church, 
now  extinct,  which  owed  its  origin  to  the  unfortunate  differ- 
ence of  opinion  under  the  pastorate  of  Mr.  Thomas  Ruggles,  Jr. 

The  first  pastor,  Mr.  Edward  Ward,  owing  to  the  dissatis- 
faction of  the  people  with  his  ministrations,  resigned  in 
and  in  1743,  Rev.  James  Sproat,  D.  D.,  a  man  of  great  ability 
as  a  preacher,  became  pastor  of  the  church  and  continued  his 
pastorate  with  great  power  and  ability  until  called  to  Phila- 
delphia. He  was  succeeded  by  Mr.  John  Hunt ;  Mr.  Hunt 
by  Rev.  Daniel  Brewer,  a  good  and  sincere  man,  who,  through 
the  influence  of  the  writings  of  Robert  Sandeman,  became  a 
Sandemanian,  and  as  one  of  the  tenets  of  that  sect  is,  that 
none  are  lawful  preachers  except  Christ  and  his  Apostles,  he 
was  naturally  unable  conscientiously  to  continue  his  min- 
istry. 

He  was  followed,  in  1790,  by  Rev.  Beriah  Hotchkin,  under 
whose  pastorate  the  church  was  dissolved.  Rev.  Mr.  Hotch- 


79 

kin  deserves  more  than  passing  mention.  He  was  born  at 
Guilford,  March,  1752.  His  father  was  a  respectable  me- 
chanic, and  though  not  a  member  of  the  visible  church,  was 
devoted  to  the  great  truths  of  religion,  and  a  diligent  student 
of  the  Scriptures.  His  mother  was  a  woman  of  strong  intel- 
lectual powers  and  rare  spiritual  gifts, — a  New  England 
Hannah. 

Before  the  birth  of  Beriah,  she  had  lost  four  children 
through  a  terrible  and  mysterious  disease,  and  in  a  moment 
of  great  spiritual  exaltation,  during  divine  worship,  she  con- 
secrated her  yet  unborn  child  to  the  Lord. 

It  would  be  indeed  remarkable  if,  with  such  a  parentage, 
and  born  under  such  circumstances,  Beriah  had  not  developed 
a  character  of  unusual  strength  and  spiritual  insight.  Before 
reaching  the  age  of  seven  he  had  read  the  Bible  through. 
He  sat  under  the  preaching  of  Rev.  Dr.  Sproat,  and  was 
deeply  impressed  by  the  great  and  solemn  truths  so  clearly 
enunciated  by  this  distinguished  divine.  In  1780,  he  united 
with  the  church  in  Cornwall  and,  on  account  of  his  marked 
spiritual  gifts,  was  strongly  urged  to  study  for  the  ministry, 
which  he  was  reluctant  to  do,  on  account  of  his  conscious 
lack  of  scholastic  training.  At  last  he  entered  upon  the 
study  of  theology  under  Rev.  Amzi  Lewis  of  Goshen,  N.  Y., 
and  was  settled  as  pastor  over  the  Fourth  Church  of  Guilford. 
After  his  dismission,  he  removed  to  the  West,  and  had  a  long 
and  useful  career  in  the  ministry.  His  sons  becoming  men 
of  education  and  marked  ability. 

The  Rev.  Amos  Fowler  was  followed,  in  the  year  1800,  by 
Israel  Brainerd. 

In  September,  1806,  Rev.  Aaron  Button  was  called  to  the 
pastorate  of  the  First  Church.  Mr.  Button  was  born  at 
Watertown,  Conn.,  May  2ist,  1780. 

He  was  fitted  for  college  under  Br.  Backus  of  Bethlem. 
Graduated  from  Yale  in  class  of  1823.  After  his  graduation 
he  pursued  the  study  of  theology  under  President  Bwight. 

Mr.  Button's  ministry  was  eminently  successful,  as  may  be 
shown  by  the  fact  that  the  church  which  numbered  at  the 
commencement  of  his  ministry  less  than  thirty  members,  at 
the  close  of  his  pastorate  numbered  over  four  hundred. 


8o 

There  were  no  less  than  six  distinct  revivals  of  religion 
during  the  thirty -six  years  of  his  ministry.  He  resigned  his 
pastorate  on  the  8th  of  June,  1842,  owing  chiefly  to  the  dif- 
ference of  opinion  between  himself  and  his  congregation  on 
the  subject  of  negro  slavery  in  the  United  States. 

After  one  year  of  active  service  as  a  missionary  at  the 
West  Mr.  Button  was  taken  ill  and  returned  to  the  house  of 
his  daughter  at  New  Haven,  Conn.  The  remaining  years  of 
his  life  were  years  of  infirmity  and  sickness,  though  he  was 
occasionally  able  to  preach.  He  died  in  1849. 


HISTORICAL    SKETCH. 


MINISTERS    OF   GUILFORD    OTHER   THAN 
CONGREGATIONAL. 

BY 

REV.   R.   L.  CHITTENDEN,   RECTOR  OF  ALL  SAINT'S  CHURCH 
(PROTESTANT  EPISCOPAL),  PARADISE,   PENN. 


[Mr.   Chittenden  is  a  descendant  of   William  Chittenden,   1639.] 


Biographies  of  ancient  men  and  women  of  the  past  if  writ- 
ten with  even  passable  ability  are  interesting  to  most  minds, 
and  biographical  sketches  of  persons  who,  although  not 
widely  known  among  their  contemporaries,  yet  have  done 
useful  and  honorable  work  in  a  certain  locality  are  interesting 
to  the  inhabitants  of  that  locality  or  to  their  descendants  who 
gather  to  commemorate  the  past,  and  renew  the  tie  of  friend- 
ship and  kindred.  The  sketches  included  in  this  unpretend- 
ing address,  which  is  but  a  compilation,  exhibit  struggles  with 
difficulties  and  conquest  over  them,  show  the  work  of  various 
types  of  Christian  ministers,  cherishing  different  views  of 
divine  truth,  introduces  historical  facts  of  interest,  and  illus- 
trates varieties  of  character.  We  give  here  sketches  of  the 
Baptist,  Methodist,  Roman  Catholic  and  Episcopal  churches 
of  Guilford,  in  the  order  of  churches  named  and  in  the  order 
of  time.  Apologizing  beforehand  for  possible  errors  and 
omissions,  and  premising  that  it  is  not  claimed  that  the 
amount  of  space  allotted  to  each  subject  is  in  just  proportion 
to  his  worth  or  the  value  of  his  work,  but  the  amount  of  de- 
tail depends,  in  part,  on  the  quantity  of  material  available. 


82 

For  a  part  of  this  material  the  writer  is  indebted  to  the  Rev. 
S.  G.  Neil  and  the  Rev.  J.  J.  Smith  of  Guilford  and  to  the 
Rev.  W.  H.  Dean  of  North  Guilford  and  to  Mr.  W.  W.  Bald- 
win, while  Beardsley's  "History  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal 
Church  in  Connecticut"  and  Sprague's  "Annals  of  the  Amer- 
ican Pulpit"  have  been  freely  drawn  upo.n.  Besides  supply- 
ing other  facts  the  Rev.  W.  G.  Andrews,  D.  D.,  rector  of 
Christ  Church,  Guilford,  furnished  the  sketches  of  the  Rev. 
Alvah  B.  Goldsmith,  Rev.  Charles  Chittenden  and  the  other 
Methodist  ministers  named  and  of  Rev.  Father  Dolan  and 
Rev.  Dr.  Bennett,  almost  verbatim  as  they  are  given  here. 

The  Rev.  John  Gano  Whitman,  a  Baptist  minister  of  Gro- 
ton,  was  here  from  time  to  time  and  we  therefore  begin  with 
a  brief  sketch  of  his  life.  His  ministry  began  at  Groton, 
Conn.,  in  the  year  1800.  He  was  usually  logical  in  preach- 
ing, seldom  carrying  any  written  preparation  into  the  desk 
but  believing  in  divine  aid  for  that  work.  Although  he  en- 
countered opposition  from  a  band  of  separatists,  known  as 
"Rogerenes,"  the  steady  work  of  his  ministry  wrought  abiding 
results.  He  was  particularly  happy  as  a  presiding  officer  in 
councils  and  associations.  He  died  peacefully  July  13,  1841, 
in  the  seventy-fifth  year  of  his  age,  after  a  ministry  of  forty- 
one  years. 

In  the  year  1823,  Alvah  Bradley  Goldsmith  was  ordained 
over  the  Baptist  Church  in  Guilford,  the  services  being  per- 
formed in  the  First  Congregational  Church.  Mr.  Goldsmith 
was  a  native  of  Guilford,  where  he  was  born,  as  my  informant 
infers,  December  2,  1792.  When  a  young  man  he  became  a 
bookseller  in  New  Haven,  and  was  an  open  and  bitter  unbe- 
liever. A  revival  in  the  year  1820  aroused  his  deepest  ani- 
mosity. On  the  8th  of  January,  1821,  at  a  celebration  of  the 
Battle  of  New  Orleans,  (though  after  the  regular  proceedings 
were  over  and  most  had  gone  home)  some  infidel  friends  who 
had  been  singing  hymns  in  mockery,  and  among  these  hymns 
"There  shall  be  mourning  at  the  judgment  seat  of  Christ," 
requested  him  to  give  them  a  sermon.  The  hymn  had  pro- 
foundly affected  him  and  he  preached  in  deadly  earnest  for, 
perhaps  two  or  three  hours.  He  had  a  struggle  of  two  or 


83 

three  days,  during  which  God's  wrath  was  manifest  enough 
to  him  and  he  felt  himself  excluded  from  salvation.  In  at- 
tempting to  describe  the  love  of  Christ  to  some  of  his  old 
companions,  that  became  an  experience  and  a  lasting  one. 
He  wrote  a  tract  describing  his  conversion,  called  "The  Infidel 
Preacher."  His  experiences  were  evidently  influenced  by 
the  prevalent  belief  of  religious  people  at  that  period,  but  his 
conversion  was  certainly  genuine.  Being  unfortunate  in 
business  he  returned  to  Guilford,  where,  besides  being  pastor 
of  the  Baptist  congregation,  he  worked  as  a  wheelwright. 
Having  no  church  building,  they  met  in  what  was  then  the 
Academy.  We  infer  that  Mr.  Goldsmith  sympathized  with 
the  movement  which  led,  about  the  year  1835,  to  tne  organ- 
ization of  associations  of  "  Old  School  Baptists,"  though  it  is 
not  known  that  his  church  was  connected  with  any  associa- 
tion. He  is  described  as  the  first  opposer  in  Connecticut"  of 
Fullerism  and  other  so-called  new  religious  inventions,  the 
term  Fullerism  standing  for  the  teachings  of  Rev.  Andrew 
Fuller,  an  eminent  English  Baptist,  who  modified  and  softened 
the  extreme  Calvinism  which  had  prevailed  in  his  denomina- 
tion and  who  was  an  earnest  promoter  of  Baptist  missionary 
efforts.  The  old  school. or  primitive  Baptists  did  not  believe 
in  missions  and  are  also  known  as  Anti-Mission  Baptists. 
By  degrees  Mr.  Goldsmith  drifted  away  from  the  tenets  of  his 
denomination  in  the  direction  of  Quakerism.  It  is  said  that 
he  always  held  firmly  to  the  central  truths  of  Christianity, 
while  he  became  less  and  less  careful  about  dogmatic  ac- 
curacy and  set  the  highest  value  on  practical  religion.  His 
life  was  eminently  Christian  and  he  was  on  friendly  terms 
with  other  ministers.  Those  who  remember  Goldsmith  say 
that  he  loved  Christ,  Christ  was  his  all  in  all.  In  his  family 
he  was  particularly  kind  and  sympathetic.  He  was  clerk  and 
judge  of  probate,  trustee  for  many  widows  and  orphans  and  a 
thoroughly  good  citizen.  He  was  remarkably  patient  under 
strong  provocation,  and  a  member  of  his  family  says  that  he 
never  saw  him  angry.  His  strong  tendency  toward  the 
spiritual  in  religion  must  have  led  to  much  sympathy  with 
the  Quaker  idea  of  "  the  inward  Christ,"  and  Christ's  second 


84 

coming  seems  to  him  to  have  been  a  spritual  one,  in  the 
hearts  of  Christians.     Mr.  Goldsmith  died  June  12,  1863. 

The  Rev.  Charles  Chittenden  came  to  Guilford  in  the  win- 
ter of  1837-8  as  a  missionary  of  the  New  York  Conference, 
though  Nathan  Kellogg  had  preceded  him.  He  organized 
the  Methodist  Church,  and,  under  him,  the  building  was 
erected,  Mr.  Chittenden  going  into  the  woods  with  some  of 
his  people  and  helping  to  fell  the  first  tree.  Services  were 
held  in  the  town  house,  and  though  the  Methodists  were 
much  disliked  by  another  denomination,  Mr.  Chittenden  by 
his  kindness  and  tact  disarmed  opposition,  and  the  congrega- 
tion grew  under  his  charge.  He  was  a  very  interesting  and 
impressive  preacher  of  the  emotional  type,  and  easily  drew 
tears.  He  was  successful  as  a  revivalist.  He  is  remembered 
as  very  fond  of  children,  whom  he  liked  to  play  with,  and  as 
excellent  company,  making  himself  at  home  everywhere.  His 
genial  and  Christian  temper  enabled  him  to  overlook  affronts 
and  to  win  over  those  who  had  ill-treated  him.  On  one  occa- 
sion, while  on  his  way  to  preach,  he  was  thrown  out  of  a 
wagon,  bruising  his  knee,  but  bound  up  the  bruise  with  a 
handkerchief  and  kept  his  appointment.  He  seems  to  have 
been  an  excellent  and  very  lovable  man.  He  used  to  visit 
Guilford  from  time  to  time,  having  relatives  here,  and  is 
remembered  very  pleasantly  by  them  and  others.  It  is  in- 
ferred that  his  pastorate  lasted  but  a  year,  as  the  church  was 
dedicated  under  his  successor,  Rev.  Hart  Pease,  who  was 
here  in  1838-9.  He  was  stationed  at  various  other  places, 
among  them  at  Ridgefield,  Cheshire  and  Berlin,  in  Connecti- 
cut, and  Hyde  Park,  in  New  York.  Toward  the  close  of  his 
life  he  suffered  from  a  throat  disorder,  and  took  to  selling 
books.  One,  which  he  gave  a  child  of  four  years — a  grand- 
niece — is  still  cherished  by  her.  He  died  in  Waterbury, 
April  27,  1872,  aged  66  years.  We  may  mention  among 
later  pastors  here,  John  Peck,  an  interesting  preacher,  and 
John  S.  Hall,  who  had  great  versatility  and  would  "  do  any- 
thing"— preach,  sing,  conduct  a  Sunday-school,  and  so  forth — 
doing  all  well,  no  doubt. 


85 

I  will  include  in  this  sketch  a  notice  of  certain  pastors  of 
the  Methodist  Church  in  Madison.  The  Rev.  James  *H. 
Perry;  of  the  New  York  Conference,  organized  the  church 
there  in  the  year  1839,  in  the  face  of  very  strong  opposition. 
It  was  with  difficulty  that  even  a  school-house  was  obtained 
for  preaching,  while  Mr.  Perry  could  find  no  house  to  live  in 
nearer  than  North  Madison — six  miles  distant.  Mr.  Perry 
had  a  resolution  which  no  obstacles  could  overcome,  and 
labored  with  unfailing  ardor.  He  left  a  class,  meeting  regu- 
larly in  a  school-house.  Other  men  of  kindred  spirit  followed 
him  and  the  congregation  obtained  a  church  in  two  or  three 
years.  In  1849  the  Rev.  George  S.  Hare  became  pastor  and 
added  largely  to  the  church  and  the  Sunday  school-doing  noble 
work.  He  was  a  man  of  ability  and  at  the  time  of  his  death 
— a  triumphant  one — was  presiding  elder  of  the  Poughkeepsie 
district  in  New  York.  Twenty  names  of  other  pastors  are  in- 
cluded in  the  list  to  the  present  time,  many  of  whom  are 
probably  living.  Had  the  writer  more  material  at  his  com- 
mand he  might  give,  doubtless,  many  other  facts  of  interest 
relating  to  the  earnest  Methodist  workers  in  this  regard. 

John  H.  Dolan  was  born  about  the  year  1850,  studied  for 
the  priesthood  at  Holy  Cross  College  and  at  the  seminary  of 
our  Lady  of  Angels  at  Niagara  Falls.  He  was  ordained 
priest  in  the  year  1882  and  became  the  first  resident  pastor  of 
St.  George's  Church,  Guilford,  in  February,  1887.  Father 
Dolan  was  a  young  man  of  engaging  manners,  energetic, 
cheerful,  faithful,  as  is  believed,  and  a  favorite  with  Protes- 
tants as  well  as  with  his  own  people.  He  seemed  to  have  the 
true  priestly  spirit  of  sacrifice  and  to  be  a  real  helper  of  that 
which  is  good  in  promoting  Christian  righteousness  among 
his  own  people.  We  learn  of  good  work  done  by  him  in  the 
cause  of  temperance.  He  died  here  on  the  3d  of  July,  1888, 
and  was  one  of  the  first  to  be  buried  in  the  new  cemetery 
which  had  been  recently  consecrated  here.  His  early  death 
was  much  lamented  and  his  funeral  was  largely  attended  by 
members  of  other  communions.  Nothwithstanding  the  dif- 
ference of  belief  and  worship  between  Roman  Catholics  and 
Protestants,  worth  of  character  and  pastoral  devotion  will  at- 
tract sincere  regard  wherever  found. 


86 

• 

In  giving  an  account  of  the  Episcopal  clergymen  of  Guil- 
ford,  we  merely  allude  to  the  Rev  Samuel  Johnson,  D.  D.,  a 
native  of  this  ancient  town,  who  showed  himself  not  forgetful 
of  her  interests  but  whose  life-work  was  in  other  fields. 

In  the  early  days  when  the  parish  at  Guilford  was  without 
a  settled  pastor,  the  Rev.  Ebenezer  Punderson  was  one  of  those 
who  held  occasional  services  here.  Mr.  Punderson  was  a  Con- 
gregational minister  living  at  North  Groton,  who,  in  the  year 
1734,  declared  for  Episcopacy  and  went  to  England  for  holy 
orders.  He  returned  and  resided  among  the  same  people 
whom  he  had  served  in  the  capacity  of  a  Congregational 
minister  and  who  still  retained  for  him  a  strong  personal 
affection.  After  exercising  his  ministry  for  a  time  in  several 
places  in  New  London  county,  in  1750  he  assumed  the 
pastoral  care  of  the  members  of  the  Church  of  England  at 
Middletown,  Guilford,  North  Guilford,  Wallingford  and  other 
places.  In  a  letter  to  the  secretary  of  the  S.  P.  G.  in  the 
same  year,  he  gave  a  detailed  account  of  a  missionary  journey 
through  this  district.  He  subsequently  removed  from  New 
Haven  and  assumed  charge  of  the  parish  at  Rye,  New  York. 

Bela  Hubbard,  a  son  of  Daniel  and  Diana  Hubbard,  was 
born  at  Guilford,  Conn.,  on  the  27th  oi  August,  1/39.  His 
parents  were  Congregationalists,  but  at  some  period,  probably 
not  far  from  the  time  of  his  leaving  college,  he  joined  the 
Episcopal  church.  He  graduated  at  Vale  in  1756.  Having 
crossed  the  ocean  for  that  purpose,  he  received  ordination  in 
England  in  February,  1764.  On  his  return  from  England, 
Mr.  Hubbard  officiated  at  Guilford  and  Killingworth  till  the 
year  1767,  when  the  venerable  Society  for  Propagating  the 
Gospel  in  Foreign  Parts  appointed  him  their  missionary  at 
New  Haven  and  West  Haven.  Mr.  Hubbard  remained  loyal 
to  the  King  of  Great  Britain  during  the  Revolutionary  strug- 
gle. Yet  he  seems  to  have  conducted  himself  with  so  much 
discretion  and  inoffensiveness  during  that  dark  period,  that  he 
was  allowed  to  pursue  the  duties  of  his  vocation  without  any 
very  serious  embarrassment.  Dr.  Hubbard  was  a  man  of  sound 
judgment,  an  excellent  reader  of  the  service,  and  his  sermons 
were  well  wrought  and  carefully  prepared.  He  was  a  man  of 


great  benevolence.  During  the  prevalence  of  the  yellow 
fever  in  New  Haven  in  1795,  he  not  only  remained  at  his  post, 
but  shrank  irom  no  sacrifice,  no  exposure,  incident  to  his  office 
as  a  helper  and  comforter.  The  spirit  which  he  manifested 
during  that  scene  of  distress  endeared  him  to  other  denomina- 
tions besides  his  own.  Dr.  Hubbard  died  Dec.  6,  1812. 

The  Rev.  David  Butler,  D.  D.,  was  born  in  Harwinton, 
Conn.,  in  the  year  1763.  In  early  life  he  was  apprenticed  to 
a  mechanical  trade,  served  for  a  time  in  the  war  of  the  Revo- 
lution, married  and  settled  down,  but,  being  a  diligent  reader, 
and  coming  under  the  influence  of  Rev.  Ashbel  Baldwin, 
D.  D.,  a  prominent  Episcopal  clergyman  of  the  day,  he  became 
convinced  that  Episcopacy  is  of  Divine  authority  and  in  time 
entered  the  ministry,  being  ordained  deacon  June  10,  1792, 
and  priest  a  year  later.  He  officiated  for  a  short  time  in 
Guilford  and  Killingworth,  bnt  afterwards  spent  many  years 
as  Rector  of  St.  Paul's  Church,  Troy,  N.  Y.  As  a  preacher, 
Dr.  Butler  was  sensible  and  instructive,  and  as  a  pastor,  kind 
and  attentive.  He  died  July  ir,  1842,  in  the  eighty-first  year 
of  his  age. 

The  Rev.  Nathan  B.  Burgess  was  rector  of  the  four  parishes 
of  Guilford,  North  Guilford,  Branford,  and  North  Bristol  (or 
Killingworth)  from  the  year  1801  to  1805.  He  had  a  long 
ministry  elsewhere,  chiefly,  it  is  thought,  in  western  New  York, 
dying  after  the  year  1853. 

Rev.  David  Baldwin  was  born  in  Litch field,  Conn.,  Febru- 
ary 4,  1780.  He  came  to  the  charge  of  Christ  Church,  Guil- 
ford, in  November,  1806,  and  was  chosen  to  become  its  settled 
pastor  March  12,  1807.  Mr.  Baldwin  was  allowed  to  preach 
while  still  a  layman,  under  clerical  supervision,  in  Litchfield 
county  as  early  as  1803.  He  was  ordained  deacon  in  Bridge- 
port in  September,  1807,  and  priest  in  Guilford  April  30, 
1809.  In  Connecticut  at  that  time  it  was  customary  for  can- 
didates for  orders  to  preach  under  clerical  supervision  before 
ordination.  An  intelligent  writer  says:  "This  practice  con- 
tinued for  a  long  time,  being  evidently  desired  by  the  laity  to 
enable  them  to  judge  of  the  candidate,  and  there  was  this 
seeming  necessity  for  it  that  under  the  early  canons  not  even 


a  deacon  could  be  ordained  "sine  titulo."  Unless  he  were  to 
teach,  or  were  specially  excused  on  other  grounds  he  must 
have  a  call  before  he  could  become  a  deacon,  and  to  get  his 
call  he  must  generally  prove  his  quality  as  a  preacher."  Mr. 
Baldwin  continued  as  rector  of  Christ  Church,  Guilford,  until 
Easter,  1834,  in  connection  with  St.  John's  Church,  North 
Guilford.  During  a  part  of  this  period  he  officiated  ten  Sun- 
days yearly  in  the  church  at  North  Killingworth,  being  also 
for  a  time  in  charge  of  North  Bristol,  which  was  at  an  early 
day  absorbed  in  the  parish  of  Killingworth.  He  continued  in 
charge  of  North  Guilford  until  1851,  officiating  in  Branford 
alternate  Sundays  until  the  church  there  had  the  entire  serv- 
ices of  a  clergyman.  He  remained  in  charge  of  Zion 
Church,  North  Branford,  and  Union  Church,  Killingworth, 
continuing  to  minister  in  those  places  until  1858,  when  infirm- 
ities of  age  disabled  him  from  all  ministerial  duties.  January 
1 6,  1816,  he  married  Miss  Ruth  Elliot,  daughter  of  Wyllys 
Elliot  of  Guilford,  great-grandson  of  Rev.  John  Eliot,  "  the 
apostle  to  the  Indians."  We  learn  of  Mrs.  Baldwin,  that  she 
dispensed  a  boundless  hospitality  in  a  house  which  was  the 
social  center  of  three  or  four  parishes,  a  hospitality  the  more 
timely,  in  consequence  of  the  distance  from  which  many  of 
the  parishoners  came  to  attend  services.  For  most  of  the 
time  until  the  year  1830  Mr.  Baldwin  was  the  only  resident 
clergyman  of  his  church  between  New  Haven  and  New  Lon- 
don, and  his  care  virtually  extended  along  the  shore  from 
East  Haven  to  Saybrook,  and  northward  to  Durham.  He  was 
thus,  in  a  sense,  one  of  the  ministers  in  Guilford  for  more 
than  fifty  years,  and  a  most  faithful  one.  He  was  a  man  of 
strong  character,  inflexibly  upright,  kind  hearted  though 
abrupt  in  manner,  a  man  to  whom  many  were  strongly 
attached.  He  had  a  strong  sense  of  humor  and  was  distin- 
guished by  a  way  of  putting  things  in  a  sort  of  terse  Yankee 
Saxon,  which  resulted  in  many  wise  and  witty  sayings,  often 
repeated  here.  He  was  a  firm  churchman,  holding  to  Epis- 
copacy with  that  inflexibility  which  is  a  part  of  the  Puritan 
character  of  religion.  Mr.  Baldwin  passed  away  in  his 
eighty-third  year,  universally  respected  and  beloved.  His 


89 

monument  in  Alderbrook  Cemetery,  according  to  the  inscrip- 
tion thereon,  was  "erected  to  his  revered  memory  in  recogni- 
tion of  his  valued  ministrations  by  grateful  parishoners  and 
other  friends  in  Guilford  and  the  adjoining  parishes,  where  he 
officiated  more  than  half  a  century." 

After  the  close  of  Rev.  Mr.  Baldwin's  rectorship  here  the 
Rev.  Messrs.  William  N.  Hawks,  Levi  H.  Corson  and  Ed- 
ward J.  Durkin,  M.  D.,  were  here  for  short  periods.  The  two 
former  served  elsewhere,  south  and  west,  the  last  returned  to 
the  practice  of  medicine.  It  is  thought  that  all  are  dead. 

The  Rev.  Lorenzo  T.  Bennett,  D.  D  ,  who  passed  away  so 
suddenly  less  than  a  week  ago,  was  the  next  rector  of  Christ 
Church,  Guilford.  Dr.  Bennett  was  born  in  1805,  graduated 
at  Yale  in  1825.  After  his  graduation  he  entered  the  United 
States  navy  and  served  for  several  years  in  the  Mediterranean 
and  elsewhere,  resigned  his  commission  and  studied  for  orders 
under  Dr.  Harry  Croswell  of  New  Haven  and  was  ordained 
deacon,  July  i,  1834,  and  priest,  November  20,  1835.  He  be- 
came minister  in  charge  of  Christ  Church,  Guilford,  immedi- 
ately on  his  ordination  to  the  diaconate,  thus  beginning  his 
work  there.  At  Easter,  1835,  he  became  assistant  minister 
in  Trinity  Church,  New  Haven,  under  Dr.  Croswell.  On  the 
1 2th  of  July,  1840,  he  took  charge  of  the  parish  at  Guilford 
as  rector,  and  his  resignation  took  effect  just  forty  years 
later — July  12,  1880.  He  was  made  rector  emeritus  by  order 
of  the  parish  and  has  taken  part  in  the  service  with  little 
interruption  since.  He  assisted  in  the  celebration  of  the 
holy  commuion  on  Sunday,  September  i,  1889,  the  day  pre- 
ceding his  death.  His  service  at  Guilford,  therefore,  may  be 
said  to  cover  more  than  half  a  century,  as  its  conclusion  was 
more  than  fifty-five  years  subsequent  to  its  beginning  and  the 
interruption  was  for  a  trifle  more  than  five  years.  The  Rev. 
Dr.  Andrews,  who  gives  this  sketch  of  his  honored  prede- 
cessor, adds:  "  I  copy  a  few  words  from  the  address  of  Rev. 
George  W.  Banks,  pastor  of  the  Third  Church  (Congrega- 
tional), uttered  four  years  ago  when  we  celebrated  the  fiftieth 
anniversary  of  Dr.  Bennett's  ordination  to  the  priesthood: 
'<  He  has  '  approved  himself  as  a  minister  of  God,  by 


90 

pureness,  by  knowledge,  by  long-suffering,  by  kindness,  by 
love  unfeigned,  and  the  good  influence  of  his  faithful,  Christian 
teachings,  and  consistent  Christian  living,  have  not  been  con- 
fined within  the  walls  of  Christ  Church  *  *  *  but  have 
gone  out  into  all  these  congregations  and  families  round 
about."  To  him  Mr.  Banks  said:  "  We  all  recognize  you, 
not  only  as  rector  emeritus  of  Christ  Church,  but  as  pastor 
emeritus  of  Guilford,  our  Father  in  Christ."  "I  add,"  con- 
tinues Dr.  Andrews,  "the  closing  stanza  of  some  verses  read 
on  the  same  occasion,  written  by  the  Rev.  Dr.  Horton,  prin- 
cipal of  the  Episcopal  Academy  at  Cheshire  : 

'  When,  full  of  honors,  full  of  years, 

Death  comes  to  set  thee  free; 
Then  may'st  thou  gladly  hail  the  hour, 
While  God's  own  strength,  thy  strength  shall  be.'  " 

His  successor  in  the  parish  adds  "that  in  the  delicate  rela- 
tion of  a  resident  ex-pastor  he  was  a  model  of  courtesy, 
always  gladly  doing  whatever  was  offered  him  to  do  for  his  old 
flock,  always  shrinking  from  the  slightest  appearance  of  con- 
trolling or  impeding  another's  work.  Dr.  Bennet  died  sud- 
denly at  the  Guilford  railroad  station,  whither  he  had  gone  to 
take  an  early  train  on  the  2d  of  September,  1889. 

As  the  members  of  the  three  families  of  the  sons  of  Levi 
bore  in  the  wilderness  wanderings,  each  group  its  allotted 
portion  of  the  sacred  tabernacle  or  its  furniture,  setting  up  the 
structure  where  needed  for  religious  rites,  so  faithful  men  of 
different  churches  labor  to  erect  a  holy  temple  acceptable 
unto  Him,  "built  upon  the  foundation  of  the  apostles  and 
prophets,  Jesus  Christ  himself  being  the  chief  cornerstone." 
We  may  rest  in  the  assurance  that,  while  time  shall  last,  a 
succession  of  faithful  men  shall  be  raised  up  to  continue  this 
work.  May  these  recitals  encourage  us  all  to  emulate  the 
virtues  and  achievements  of  those  servants  of  God  who  have 
labored  here — "every  man  in  his  own  order." 


'THE  LEGEND  OF  SACHEMS  HEAD." 

HY 

GEORGE  A  WILCOX.  OF  DETROIT,   MICH. 


[It  is  due  both  to  the  audience  and  to  the  author  of  these  verses  to  say 
that  they  were  written  at  a  very  youthful  age  when  he  was  a  student  in  col- 
lege, in  response  to  a  call  made  upon  him  by  a  literary  society  of  which  he 
was  a  member,  for  something  that  should  pass  for  an  original  poem.  It  is 
also  proper  to  state  that  while  the  verses  have  been  somewhat  shaped  to 
follow  the  general  drift  of  the  historical  facts  (so  far  as  they  are  known  to 
the  writer),  yet  there  are  still  considerable  divergences  of  detail  which  must 
be  conceded  to  ''poetic  license,"  without  which  it  would  be  rather  difficult 
to  extract  any  poetry  from  the  grim  event  on  the  Guilford  headland  very 
briefly  recorded.  Perhaps  the  most  interesting  historical  fact  that  can  be 
authentically  associated  with  this  juvenile  effusion  is  the  discovery  quite 
recently  made  by  the  write*  that  one  of  the  leaders  of  the  forces  which 
pursued  the  flying  Pequots  along  the  coast,  after  the  slaughter  at  the 
Mystic  Fort,  and  the  one  who,  according  to  Winthrop,  was  in  command  at 
the  tragedy  at  "Sachem's  Head,"  was  one  of  his  own  ancestral  blood  rela- 
tivts  (viz  :  Captain  Stoughton,  of  the  Massachusetts  colony,  who  had  been 
sent  with  eighty  men  to  assist  the  Connecticut  men  in  their  fight  with  the 
Pequots).  Hence,  if  the  youthful  muse  appears  to  be  too  sentimentally 
sympathetic  with  the  Indian  on  this  occasion,  it  may  be  assumed  to  be  at 
the  expense  of  the  writer's  own  kith  and  kin  of  that  remote  date  rather 
than  of  the  eatly  Guilford  settlers,  since  these  settlers  did  not  arrive  here 
till  some  two  years  after  this  hostile  tribe  of  Pequots  had  been  practically 
exterminated,  thus  rendering  the  peaceful  settlement  of  this  coast  possi- 
ble, which  we  are  now  commemorating.  Probably  no  one  will  ever  seri- 
ously regret,  either  in  history  or  poetry,  the  final  disappearance  of  a  tribe 
for  which  the  world  had  no  further  use.l 


THE   LEGEND   OF  SACHEM'S   HEAD. 


Full  many  a  Spring  has  come  with  its  flowers; 

Full  many  an  Autumn  with  leaf  red  and  sere; 
Full  many  a  Summer  of  sunsh  ny  hours, 

And  many  a  dark  Winter — hoar  crown  of  the  year. 
Thrice  a  thousand  of  moons  have  fled  with  their  train 

Of  deeds  unrenjembered  in  historic  lore; 
But  a  legend  of  old  will  sometimes  remain 

To  tell  of  the  scenes  of  the  brave  days  of  yore. 


92 

Not  always  these  fields  were  tilled  by  the  hand; 

Not  always  the  flock  wandered  over  the  hill; 
Proud  forests  once  stood  where  these  fair  orchards  stand, 

And  the  wolf  from  his  lair  roamed  about  at  his  will. 
No  spire  from  the  valley  pointed  up  to  the  sky; 

No  church-going  bell  sent  forth  merry  peals; 
But  the  night  air  resounded  with  the  panthers'  dread  cry, 

When  the  red  man  was  monarch  of  forest  and  fields. 

Dark  lowered  the  sky  of  an  early  June  morn, 

In  that  far  off  time — the  dim  region  of  eld; 
The  storm-wind  moaned  like  a  thing  forlorn, 

As  it  burst  from  its  cloud  home,  and  fitfully  swelled. 
It  smote  the  old  forest,  and  the  strong  oaks  bowed; 

It  tossed  the  mad  waves  in  their  yeasty  bed; 
While  the  white  breakers  wrapped  all  the  reefs  in  a  shroud, 

And  murmured  hoarse  requiems  as  for  souls  of  the  dead. 

Alone  on  the  rock  stood  a  grim  old  chief 

Of  a  hunted  band,  survivor  and  last; 
None  to  share  his  anger,  none  to  solace  his  grief, 

None  to  break  the  sad  spell  that  his  spirit  o'ercast. 
The  white  foam  o'erspread  him,  but  he  felt  it  not; 

The  wind  screamed  above,  but  his  ear  was  deaf; 
He  thought  only  then  of  his  lone  hapless  lot, 

For  a  tribeless  sachem  was  that  grave  old  chief. 

A  leader  renowned  that  chieftain  had  been, 

With  warriors  around  him  all  fearless  and  true; 
But  no  foeman  now  fears  his  might,  well  I  ween, 

Whose  remnant  of  braves  yonder  seashore  bestrew. 
Driv'n  along  the  ccast  from  the  Pequot  land, 

Here  hemm'd  by  the  foe  'twixt  forest  and  wave; 
Those  who  turned  but  fell  on  the  tide-washed  strand, 

Those  who  swam  but  sank  in  a  watery  grave. 

Save  only  the  chief,  who  escaped  to  this  rock, 

Through  cordon  of  fire,  by  the  dawn's  early  light, 
And  watched  from  his  hiding  the  battle's  brief  shock 

That  left  none  alive — and  vain  his  own  flight. 
Mohegan  and  paleface  but  wait  for  the  day 

To  search  o'er  the  cliff  for  the  last  stubborn  foe; 
The  victory  scarce  won  if  he  'scapes  from  the  fray; 

His  death  knell  their  safety — his  safety  their  woe. 

Still  fiercer  the  east  wind  howled  through  the  sky; 

Still  darker  the  storm-cloud  fell  on  the  deep; 
No  voice  from  the  waters  save  sea  gull's  shrill  cry; 

No  voice  from  the  strand  where  the  strong  warriors  sleep. 


93 

But  a  smoke  curls  up  from  the  rock-bound  plain, 

And  floats  far  away  on  the  high  morning  gale; 
Tis  the  paleface's  watch-fire,  but  never  again 

Shall  smoke  of  the  wigwam  mark  the  Pequots  trail. 

Oh  !  dark  was  the  soul  of  Waurega*  and  drear; 

No  tree  of  midwinter  so  leafless  and  bare; 
And  his  wild  eye  glistened,  but  there  fell  no  tear; 

No  sigh  told  the  depth  of  the  agony  there. 
He  turned  him  to  seaward — to  landward  he  turned; 

Like  a  knell  on  his  ear  still  rung  the  hoarse  blast, 
And  his  spirit,  though  darkened,  with  deep  sorrow  yearned, 

As  he  mused  of  his  wrongs,  as  he  thought  of  the  past. 

For  he  thought  of  the  days  and  the  years  of  yore, 

When  he  and  his  Pequots  were  victors  in  fight, 
Ere  the  step  of  the  paleface  had  trod  on  his  shore, 

Ere  his  warriors  had  fallen  'neath  the  white  man's  might. 
And  he  thought  of  the  village  where  at  evening's  calm  shades, 

The  huntsmen  would  gather  from  the  chase  on  the  hill; 
Of  the  wide-spreading  lawn  where  the  dark-eyed  maids 

Would  dance  in  the  twilight  when  the  forests  were  still. 

Will  they  come,  thought  the  chief,  nevermore  to  my  sight? 

Are  their  limbs  all  cold — their  hearts  like  the  stone? 
Of  the  braves  who  escaped  from  the  Mystic  Hill  fight, 

Is  their  chief,  like  a  stag,  left  hunted  alone? 
Nevermore,  lone  chief,  the  spirit  wind  sighed, 

Will  they  come  at  thy  call — their  hearts  are  all  still; 
The  remnant  that  'scaped  now  surge  with  the  tide; 

Alone  must  thou  wander  like  a  stag  on  the  hill. 

He  thought  of  his  fathers  and  the  war-worn  braves, 

Who  had  folded  their  arms  and  sunk  to  their  sleep; 
Far  eastward  were  left  their  time-honored  graves, 

Where  the  tall  oaks  o'er-shadowand  the  wild  woodbine  creep. 
Often  at  evening  had  he  sat  by  those  mounds 

To  tell  the  young  chiefs  of  their  chivalric  sires; 
How  they  conquered  in  battle  and  gained  these  fair  grounds; 

How  here  they  once  sat  around  their  great  council  fires. 

Will  they  never,  he  murmured,  when  the  sun  falleth  low, 

And  the  hill-sides  are  shaded,  gather  closely  around? 
Must  their  graves  all  be  left  with  the  pale-face  and  foe, 

Unheeding  to  tread  on  the  long-hallowed  ground  ? 
Ah  no  !  lone  chief,  though  on  hill-top  and  dell 

The  sun  shall  set  oft-,  none  will  gather  a-near; 
These  wilds  soon  will  echo  the  browsing  kine's  bell, 

And  the  ploughshare  upturn  the  mould  buried  here. 

'This  name  is  purely  imaginary,  the  real  name  of  the  beheaded  sachem  not  being  men- 
tioned historically. 


94 

He  recalled  the  far  hill-side  where  his  warriors  lay  strewed; 

Their  dark  locks  all  clotted,  their  life  pulses  chilled, 
Beside  them  their  hatchets,  with  their  own  blood  imbrued, 

But  the  hands  that  once  held  them  now  stiffened  and  stilled, 
No  slowly  sung  chaunt  to  tell  their  past  glory; 

Nor  e'en  a  lone  grave  where  their  corses  may  dwell, 
They  must  sleep  with  their  girdles  all  blood-stained  and  gory, 

They  must  slumber  and  smoulder  on  the  ground  where  they  fell. 

Not  darker  the  cloud  that  o'erhung  him  like  night; 

Not  wilder  the  wave  that  madly  rushed  by, 
Than  the  soul  of  Waurega,  as  he  turned  from  the  sight, 

Heartbroken  and  weary  and  ready  to  die. 
But  listen,  he  speaks,  no  longer  as  one 

Who  seeks  mid  earth's  ruins  some  lone  refuge  to  find; 
But  sad  as  the  note  of  the  night  bird  the  tone 

That  bears  the  death  chaunt  of  the  chief  on  the  wind. 

Waurega  hath  ta'en  his  last  look  at  the  sun; 
He  hath  folded  his  arms;  his  labor  is  done; 
He  will  follow  the  path  his  warriors  have  gone. 

His  hatchet  is  buried,  his  bow  is  unstrung, 
Beside  them  the  quiver  with  its  long  arrows  flung; 
No  more  will  the  war  cry  rise  on  his  tongue. 

The  deep  snow  of  Winter  will  fall  on  the  plain; 
The  sun  from  the  south  will  bring  Summer  again; 
The  streams  of  the  forest  will  swell  with  the  rain; 

But  no  step  of  Waurega  will  be  found  in  the  snow; 
His  eye  will  not  watch  on  the  trail  of  the  foe; 
The  Mohegan  shall  boast,  and  his  ear  will  not  know. 

The  Great  Spirit  is  angry,  He  looks  from  the  sky, 
And  his  brow  groweth  darker,  more  fearful  his  eye, 
And  he  asks  of  the  wind  that  roughly  sweeps  by: 

Why  livetk  Waurega  when  his  warriors  are  dead  ? 
Why  bled  not  his  veins  on  the  plain  where  they  bled  ? 
Is  his  heart  like  a  woman's  ?     Doth  it  quiver  and  dread  ? 

Waurega  will  list  to  the  voice  of  the  chief, 
He  will  come  at  the  call — to  die  is  not  grief, 
His  heart  is  all  wasted  like  the  dry  forest  leaf. 

There  are  grounds  for  the  hunter  far  up  in  the  sky, 
Where  the  deer  is  not  scared  by  the  warriors'  fierce  cry, 
The  Pequots  are  brothers,  their  lodges  are  nigh. 


95 

Great  Spirit  !  that  moveth  on  the  deep-moving  seas, 
That  walketh  unseen  'mid  the  tall  forest  trees, 
That  whispereth  at  twilight  in  the  low  evening  breeze, 

Guide  the  feet  of  Waurega  to  that  land  of  the  blest; 

As  the  pale  sun  of  Winter  sinks  down  in  the  west, 

So  now  would  Waurega  sink  down  to  his  rest. 

He  ceased;  and  turned  him  where  the  wave 

Still  lashed  the  rock  in  seething  foam; 
And  this  perchance  had  been  the  grave 

Of  him  who  sought  a  peaceful  home 
In  happy  fields  Tjeyond  the  skies; 
But  no  !  not  thus  the  warrior  dies. 

The  pale-face  band  came  down  amain; 

For  watchful  scouts  had  heard  that  strain, 
And  knew  that  warrior  fierce  and  bold, 

Knew  him  as  one  who  ne'er  would  yield; 
Knew  him  as  one  whose  blow  had  sealed 

The  fate  of  foemen  manifold. 

They  seek  him  now  with  vengeful  ire; 

The}'  reck  not  that  he  stands  alone; 
Blood  is  the  meed  which  they  require 

For  bloody  deeds  his  hands  have  done, 
Defending  home  and  wigwam  fire. 

And  now,  as  morning  light  reveals 

His  stalwart  form  against  the  sky, 
A  mocking  shout  the  welkin  peals 

That  tells  him  of  a  doom  full  nigh. 
He  meets  it  with  undaunted  eye, 

Nor  seeks  to  shun  the  impending  blow; 
As  he  hath  lived,  so  will  he  die. 

Defiant  of  a  conquering  foe. 

With  fatal  aim  the  shot  is  sped; 

With  deadly  zeal  the  scalp-knife  bared  ; 
The  quarry  falls — the  chief  is  dead — 

Tis  hated  Uncas  lays  him  low. 
No  more  shall  he  this  Pequot  dread, 

For  high  upborne  the  reeking  head 
Marks  'where  he  fell,  (on  staff  uprear'd 

For  victoiy  won),  and  Time  hath  spared, 

Of  him  who  here  had  shrift  so  brief  ; 

And  all  his  deeds,  joy,  hope  or  grief, 
These  sole  mementoes  of  his  fate  ; 

The  ghastly  trophy,  dank  and  red, 
And  wave-worn  rock  on  which  I  sate, 

And  dreamed  this  dream  of  "  Sachem's  Head." 


FITZ-GREENE  HALLECK. 


PROFESSOR  CHARLES   FREDERICK   JOHNSON,  TRINITY  COL- 
LEGE, HARTFORQ, 


[Prof.  Johnson  is  a  descendant  of  William   Johnson.  1658,  and  Francis 
Bushnell,  1639.] 


Since  experience  is  the  sole  source  of  our  practical  knowl- 
edge, and  the  past  is  the  sole  prophecy  and  pledge  of  the 
future,  and  what  our  ancestors  did  is  the  earnest  of  what  we 
do  and  will  do,  it  is  becoming  in  every  community  to  review 
at  stated  intervals  its  history,  and  to  gratulate  itself  on 
the  lives  and  work  of  its  worthy  citizens  whose  work  is  over. 
Indeed,  it  is  more  than  becoming,  it  is  a  duty,  for  it  is  largely 
by  historical  retrospects  that  national  character  is  formed  and 
the  communal  spirit  is  nourished.  For  a  few  hours  we  live 
and  think,  not  as  individuals  within  the  narrow  horizon  of  indi- 
vidual effort,  but  as  members  of  society  in  those  broader  and 
more  disinterested  thoughts  which  culminate  in  national  life. 
The  observance  of  centennials  and  semi-centennials  which 
has  become  so  common  in  New  England  of  late  must  be  re- 
garded, not  simply  as  the  keeping  of  festivals  whose  influence 
is  to  terminate  with  the  pleasant  hours  of  their  passing,  but 
as  a  valuable  means  of  popular  political  education  and  in  no 
narrow  sense  as  religious  observances.  Is  it  not  a  form  of 
worship  to  call  up  the  remembrance  of  those  whom  we  rightly 
revere  ?  Did  not,  in  all  the  strong  nations  of  antiquity,  the 
ancestor  and  founder  pass  over  in  the  imagination  of  the  peo- 
ple into  the  character  of  the  demigod  and  divine  exemplar  and 
protector  ?  In  the  Roman  triumph  the  waxen  images  of  the 


97 

ancestors  were  carried  at  the  head  of  the  procession  and  the 
spirits  of  the  departed  were  supposed  to  participate  in  the  ex- 
ultation of  the  living.  It  is  right  that  we  who  come  from -a 
more  honorable  line  than  that  of  Theseus  or  Romulus  should 
recognize  in  a  more  rational,  if  less  artistic  manner,  our  in- 
debtedness to  our  fathers. 

This  duty  of  secular  recognition  of  the  past  belongs  in  a 
peculiar  sense  to  the  old  Connecticut  towns.  For  they  have 
a  history,  and  it  behooves  them  to  cultivate  the  historic  sense. 
They  have  had  a  germinal  character,  and  have  in  our  national 
development  a  weight  beyond  their  wealth  or  their  territorial 
importance.  They  have  been  great  nurseries  of  men  and 
centers  of  social  principles,  schools  of  political  thought  and 
initial  points  of  the  democratic  evolution.  There  are  so 
many  things  in  this  country  that  have  no  past  at  all,  and  so 
many  others  that  have  no  past  to  be  proud  of,  that  a  thorough- 
bred town  like  old  Guilford,  which  has  its  roots  in  the  i/th 
century,  and  its  fine,  rich,  God-fearing  i8th  century  life,  its 
legends  and  its  peculiar  local  character,  its  individuality,  as 
well  as  its  part  in  the  state  and  national  history,  ought  not  to 
fail  in  any  observance  which  may  keep  these  things  so  worthy 
of  honor  in  perpetual  remembrance.  By  acknowledgment 
such  as  that  of  this  week  you  recognize  that  life  is  not  all  of 
to-day,  that  the  fathers  and  the  children  are  one,  bound  to- 
gether in  a  perpetual  covenant ;  you  reinforce  the  essential 
solidarity  of  society,  you  vitalize  anew  the  atomic  cohesion  of 
the  state,  and  you  serve  the  interests  of  the  nation  on  that 
side  which  in  our  amazing  material  development  is  apt  to  be- 
come obscured,  the  spiritual  and  moral  side. 

And  when  you  call  the  roll  of  your  dead  and  gone  worthies, 
when  you  name  those  who  subdued  the  wilderness  and  made 
possible  the  Connecticut  of  to-day,  or  name  those  others  of 
Guilford's  sons  who  have  gone  from  here  into  wider  fields  and 
won  honor,  or  distinction,  or  wealth  ;  when  you  trace  the  influ- 
ence of  Guilford  in  the  councils  of  the  republic  or  in  the 
building  of  our  great  Western  Empire,  it  is  meet  and  proper 
that  you  should  honor  also  those  of  her  children  whose 
principal  life-work  was  in  another  world — the  world  of  art. 


98 

For  there  is  a  world  of  art  as  well  as  a  world  of  things,  and  it 
is  a  very  important  world,  too,  though  it  is  one  in  which 
America  has  few  triumphs  to  show.  It  is  a  world  whose  im- 
portance we  do  not  as  a  people  understand,  a  world  in  which 
some  men  and  women  live,  and  a  world  where  all  men  and 
women  should  sojourn  from  time  to  time  if  they  would  attain 
to  any  other  than  a  one-sided  and  abnormal  development. 
In  all  ages  the  artist  has  been  held  to  reflect  honor  on  his 
country,  and  of  all  artists  the  artist  in  words — the  poet — is 
preeminent  in  men's  estimation  Even  when  unknown  or  un- 
noticed in  his  life,  posterity  has  sought  for  marble  of  fineness 
fit  to  build  his  monument.  Guilford  has  been  the  birthplace 
of  a.  poet — not  a  great  epic  poet  nor  one  who  could  embody 
in  words  a  philosophy  of  life  which  should  become  a  reve- 
lation to  humanity,  but  a  lyric  poet  of  grace  and  purity. 
Fitz-Greene  Halleck,  your  townsman,  was  an  artist  at  a  time 
when  it  was  even  more  difficult  to  live  the  artistic  life  in 
America  than  it  is  now — when  less  sympathy  was  felt  with 
artistic  endeavor  than  is  felt  now.  It  is  as  an  artist  that  I  wish 
to  speak  of  him,  for  with  his  personal  traits  and  his  personal 
history  many  of  you  are  doubtless  well  acquainted,  probably 
far  better  so  than  I  could  become.  And  as  a  descendant  of 
an  early  settler  of  Guilford,  I  esteem  it  a  privilege  to  speak  to 
you  of  the  work  of  the  most  illustrious  of  the  descendants  of 
our  fathers.  But  allow  me  first  to  make  a  few  introductory 
remarks  on  the  function  of  the  poetic  art  in  general,  and  to 
speak  briefly  of  the  reasons  why  no  great  poet  appeared  in 
America  to  chronicle  the  struggle  for  independence. 

The  thirty  or  forty  thousand  Englishmen  who  emigrated  to 
New  England  in  the  i/thand  early  part  of  the  i8th  centuries 
furnished  the  element  which  has  given  tone  to  the  American 
character.  They  comprised  more  than  a  fair  proportion  of 
educated  men,  and  no  doubt  embodied  a  fair  representation  of 
the  race  capacity  for  and  love  of  poetic  expression.  But  the 
hunger  for  that  expression  was  temporarily  set  aside  by  reason 
of  the  peculiar  attitude  of  the  Puritan  mind.  It  assumed  that 
the  moral  world  was  subject  to  the  laws  of  a  rigorous  mechan- 
ism. The  free  play  of  individual  agency  was  harshly  restricted 


99 

by  an  exalted  conception  of  duty.  Righteousness,  that  high- 
est, ideal  of  humanity,  was  regarded  as  necessarily  bound  up 
in  a  line  of  formal  conduct  and  not  as  an  indwelling  quality. 
Systematic  dogma  fenced  in  opinion.  The  external  circum- 
stance of  life  in  a  new  country  demanded  physical  work, 
steady,  unremitting.  The  theory  of  life  was  supposed  to  be 
settled  or  invited  speculation  only  within  certain  well-defined 
lines.  From  such  a  society  we  should  expect  poetry  no  more 
than  we  should  expect  it  from  a  college  of  Jesuits,  for  the 
essential  requirement  of  poetry  is  freedom,  not  civil  liberty 
but  freedom  of  the  spirit.  When,  by  degrees,  the  national 
consciousness  took  form,  giving  the  colonies  a  definite  char- 
acter, and  even  when  the  great  event  of  the  separation  from 
the  mother  country  took  place  the  national  intellect  was  not 
at  once  emancipated.  The  habit  of  artistic  creation  had  not 
been  formed,  the  taste  for  its  enjoyment  had  not  been  fostered. 
The  birth  of  a  nation  is  an  event  which  frees  men's  spirits 
and  raises  them  to  the  height  of  a  generous  enthusiasm,  which 
holds  up  before  them  an  ideal  that  induces  sacrifice,  and  sinks 
personal  thought  in  higher  and  nobler  aims.  Such  an  event 
ought  to  have  been  creative  in  the  highest  sense,  and  it  was  so 
in  many  ways.  That  our  Revolutionary  War  was  not  followed 
by  an  unlocking  and  temporary  exaltation  of  the  national 
intellect,  that  it  gave  birth  to  no  great  poetry,  may  be  ex- 
plained on  various  grounds.  One  reason  is  that  it  was  not  a 
race  struggle  but  a  contest  for  legal  rights  initiated  by  infringe- 
ments on  property  and  local  government.  It  had  a  marked  com- 
mercial side.  Another  reason  was  that  society  was  crude  in 
form  and  remained  in  intellectual  subservience  to  England,  and 
another,  that  the  field  of  practical  activity  remained  too  broad 
and  fruitful.  There  was,  as  yet,  neither  elegant  leisure  nor  a 
traditionary  past.  But  in  spite  of  the  modern  philosophy 
which  seeks  to  account  for  the  poet  by  his  surroundings  and 
regards  him  as  a  sort  of  aesthetic  plant  which  is  sown  and 
cultivated  in  rotation  with  other  crops,  it  seems  to  me  that 
the  chief  reason  why  no  great  poet  was  produced  in  America 
during  the  eighteenth  century  was  that  no  great  poet  was 
sent  here.  If  Shelley's  and  Keats's  parents  had  emigrated  to 


IOO 

America,  Shelley  and  Keats  would  have  been  born  here,  and 
had  they  grown  up  in  America  they  would  have  been  differ- 
ent men,  but  no  environment  could  have  prevented  them  from 
being  Shelley  and  Keats,  the  poets.  As  it  is,  we  happen  to 
have  Dwight  and  Trumbull  and  Barlow,  but  no  poets  of  the 
first  rank.  After  the  revolution  and  in  the  first  quarter  of 
the  present  century,  we  find  in  America  a  society  passing  out 
of  the  provincial  stage,  a  society  vaguely  conscious  of  its  in- 
dependence but  not  yet  so  permeated  with  the  idea  as  to  have 
entered  on  the  stage  of  unconscious,  self-respecting,  artistic 
production.  It  had  still  a  great  practical  work  before  it.  Its 
past  has  not  yet  become  so  thoroughly  assimilated  as  to  form 
a  background  of  national  life.  It  still  looks  for  its  scholarly 
and  intellectual  nutriment  back  to  the  mother  country.  It 
reads  with  avidity  Byron  and  Moore  and  Scott,  the  English 
ideals  of  the  day.  A  few  young  men  essay  to  imitate  them. 
Drake  and  Willis  and  Halleck  catch  the  note  and  reproduce 
it  here  with  vigor  and  naivete.  Foe  sounds  a  note  of  his 
own,  a  penetrating  and  unearthly  minor  chord,  not  long  sus- 
tained nor  powerful,  piercing  in  accent  but  slight  in  volume. 
Longfellow  begins  the  strain  of  plaintive  and  reflective  song 
which  has  not  yet  become  so  classic  as  to  be  forgotten. 
Among  the  American  poets  of  the  first  quarter  of  the  century 
there  is  none  whose  note  is  truer  than  Halleck's.  If  his 
rhymed  rhetoric  is  not  so  copious  and  powerful  as  Byron's,  it 
is  never  cynical  with  a  shallow  and  ill-natured  contempt  of 
mankind.  Such  self-knowledge  as  he  had  did  not  undermine 
self-respect  nor  regard  for  his  brothers.  If  his  songs  have  not 
quite  the  musical  quality  of  Moore's,  their  gaiety  is  more 
simple  and  natural  and  echoes  a  less  conventional  sentiment. 
If  his  vers  de  societe  lack  the  perfect  form  and  dainty  wit  of 
Praed's,  it  is  only  because  Praed  is  unapproachable  in  lightness 
of  touch  and  felicitous  turn  of  rhymed  expression. 

Fitz-Greene  Halleck  was  born  in  this  village  in  a  house 
fronting  on  the  Green,  July  8,  1790.  He  could  trace  his 
descent  from  more  than  one  ancient  and  honorable  New  Eng- 
land stock,  for  his  mother's  maiden  name  was  Mary  Eliot, 
fourth  in  descent  from  the  godly  John  Eliot,  the  apostle  to 


IOI 

the  Indians,  who  was  one  of  those  engaged  in  the  preparation 
of  the  first  book  printed  in  this  country,  the  "Bay  Psalm  Book." 
His  boyhood  was  passed  like  the  youth  of  all  well-condi- 
tioned New  England  boys,  in  a  wholesome  social  atmosphere, 
where  books  were  held  in  respect  and  the  things  of  the  mind 
were  counted  of  more  worth  than  the  things  of  the  body.  His 
education  was  that  which  a  studious  lad  of  a  refined  nature 
would  receive  in  the  village  academy,  where  he  was  the  favor- 
ite pupil  of  his  instructor,  Samuel  Johnson.  At  the  age  of 
fifteen  he  went  to  work  as  clerk  in  the  village  store  here,  and 
even  at  that  early  period  he  seems  to  have  been  distinguished 
by  the  natural  courtesy  and  kindness  which  so  marked  his 
bearing  in  his  later  years.  At  the  age  of  twenty-one  he  went 
to  the  city  of  New  York,  then  a  town  of  about  one  hundred 
thousand  inhabitants.  There  he  entered  the  counting  house 
of  Jacob  Barker,  one  of  the  leading  bankers  and  merchants  of 
that  day.  This  connection  lasted  twenty-one  years,  though 
broken  by  an  interval  when  Halleck  made  an  unsuccessful 
attempt  to  carry  on  a  commercial  business  on  his  own  account. 
In  1832  he  was  employed  in  a  confidential  capacity  by  the 
first  Astor.  There  he  remained  for  sixteen  years,  or  until 
Mr.  Astor's  death.  By  Astor's  will  he  received  the  modest 
life  annuity  of  two  hundred  dollars,  which  was  subsequently 
commuted  by  Mr.  Astor's  heirs  for  a  lump  sum  of  ten  thou- 
sand dollars.  As  Halleck  received  for  nearly  forty  years  a 
good  salary,  and  in  addition  was  paid  not  less  than  seventeen 
thousand  dollars  for  his  poetry,  he  should  have  had  a  capital 
amply  sufficient  for  his  needs.  But  he  seems  to  have  been 
one  of  those  for  whom  money  has  no  affinity,  though  his  wants 
were  moderate  and  his  habits  of  life  not  expensive.  His  later 
years  were  passed  in  his  native  village,  cramped  by  very 
insufficient  means,  but  cheered  by  the  noble,  womanly  devo- 
tion of  his  sister,  Miss  Maria  Halleck.  He  was  buried  in 
the  graveyard  of  his  native  place, — literally  gathered  to  his 
fathers, — in  1867,  at  the  age  of  seventy -seven  years.  Such 
is  the  external  circumstance  of  his  life, — uneventful,  common- 
place, commercial — laborious  hours — an  end  chilled  by  pov- 
erty and  neglect. 


IO2 

But  as  there  are  two  worlds,  which  all  of  us  habitually  recog- 
nize ;  the  world  of  things  hard,  solid,  visible,  tangible,  subject 
to  material  law,  and  another  world  of  the  mind,  strongly  rooted 
in  the  first,  permeating  it  and  sometimes  controlling  it,  so  this 
man  lived  two  lives.  He  passed  habitually  from  the  counting 
house  to  the  fields  of  Arcady,  where  his  employer  could  not 
follow  him.  For  there  was  given  to  him  the  language  of  the 
imagination,  the  love  of  nature,  the  ability  to  interpret  in 
words  some  of  her  simpler  moods,  the  enthusiasm  of  the  intel- 
lect, and  the  power  of  graceful  metrical  expression.  These 
are  not  the  gifts  of  the  seer,  but  they  are  some  of  the  gifts  of 
the  singer.  It  is  these  gifts  that  constitute  the  Halleck  that 
is  known  to  us,  and  it  is  his  life  in  their  domain  that  we  follow 
with  the  truest  interest. 

As  a  boy  he  read  poetry  eagerly  and  wrote  boyish  verse. 
The  most  genuine  poetic  influence  under  which  he  grew  seems 
to  have  been  that  of  Burns.  He  was  not  a  precocious  versi- 
fier, like  so  many  of  those  to  whom  that  power  is  given,  and 
little  that  came  from  his  "  prentice  hand  "  is  worth  preserving. 
Those  who  go  far  in  art  begin  young.  It  was  not  till  Halleck 
went  to  New  York,  where  contact  with  a  broader  and  more 
diversified  life  gave  his  verse  a  burden  of  thought,  and  the 
companionship  and  friendship  of  Joseph  Rodman  Drake 
brought  him  the  stimulus  of  artistic  sympathy  that  his  genius 
found  any  adequate  expression.  There  are  few  literary 
friendships  on  record  more  charming  than  that  of  Drake  and 
Halleck.  Alas,  that  it  was  so  early  closed  by  death,  which 
sooner  or  later  severs  all  friendships.  The  "  Croakers,"  a 
series  of  short  poems  which  appeared  in  the  Evening  Post, 
satirising  with  good  humored  persiflage  the  leading  person- 
ages of  the  day  in  the  worlds  of  politics  and  fashion,  were 
their  joint  productions.  These  are  as  neatly  done  as  any- 
thing of  the  kind  that  has  appeared  since,  ephemeral,  of 
course,  from  the  local  interest  of  their  topics  but  abounding 
with  wit  and  youthful  high  spirits  and  brimful  of  a  sauciness 
which  never  oversteps  the  limits  of  good  breeding.  Some  of 
them  are  by  Drake,  others  by  -Halleck,  and  others  partly  by 
each,  and  the  closeness  of  literary  sympathy  between  the 


IDS 

young  men  is  evinced  by  the  fact  that  the  style  and  manner 
of  all  the  verses  is  exactly  the  same.  These  poems  attracted 
a  great  deal  of  notice  at  the  time  of  their  publication,  the 
more  that  the  secret  of  their  authorship  was  carefully  kept. 
Light  satire  has  never  been  written  in  America  with  more 
spirit  and  fluency. 

In  1820  Halleck  published  "  Fanny,"  a  satirical  society 
poem  of  considerable  length,  afterwards  extended  by  the  ad- 
dition of  another  canto.  It  is  in  the  stanza  of  Byron's  Beppo, 
and  is  the  precursor  of  Notliing  to  Wear,  The  Diamond  Wed- 
ding, and  many  other  productions  of  the  sort.  But  satire 
which  is  aimed  at  the  follies  and  fashions  of  the  day  cannot 
be  much  longer  lived  than  they.  The  delicacy  of  the  allu- 
sions is  lost  when  the  subjects  are  forgotten  All  poetry  to 
last  must  be  either  absolutely  perfect  in  literary  form,  or  it 
must  have  a  firm,  philosophical  basis,  and  some  true  in- 
sight into  humanity  ;  and  satire,  to  be  really  powerful,  must  be 
aimed  at  the  weakness  and  sin  which  underlies  human  nature 
and  not  merely  at  the  fleeting  fashions  of  the  hour.  There  is 
none  of  the  sceva  indignatio  about  Halleck,  and  indeed  lack 
of  seriousness  is  his  weakness.  Lowell  characterizes  him 
with  his  usual  felicity  in  the  Fable  for  Critics.  No  doubt  he 
would  have  spoken  still  more  warmly  had  "  Marco  Bozzaris" 
been  written  at  the  time.  He  says  : — 

"There  goes  Halleck,  whose  Fanny's  a  pseudo  Don  Juan 

With  the  wickedness  out  that  gave  salt  to  the  true  one  ; 

He's  a  wit,  though,  I  hear,  of  the  very  first  order, 

And  once  made  a  pun  on  the  words  '  Soft  Recorder.' 

More  than  this,  he's  a  very  great  poet,  I'm  told, 

And  has  had  his  works  published  in  crimson  and  gold, 

With  something  they  call  Illustrations — to  wit, 

Like  those  with  which  Chapman  obscured  Holy  Writ — 

Cuts  rightly  called  wooden,  as  all  must  admit, 

Which  are  said  to  illustrate,  because,  as  I  view  it, 

Like  Incus  a  non,  they  precisely  don't  do  it. 

Let  a  man  who  can  write  what  himself  understands, 

Keep  clear,  if  he  can,  of  designing  men's  hands, 

Who  bury  the  sense,  if  there's  any  worth  having, 

And  then  very  honestly  call  it  engraving. 

But,  to  quit  badinage,  which  there  isn't  much  wit  in, 

Halleck's  better,  I  doubt  not,  than  all  he  has  written  ; 


-  / 

fari&rl  Japan  /  ^tsfatfKtijttt^T' 
I  J  '•  I  <•    // 


104 

In  his  verse  a  clear  glimpse  you  will  frequently  find, 

If  not  of  a  great,  of  a  fortunate  mind, 

Which  contrives  to  be  true  to  its  natural  loves, 

In  a  world  of  back-offices,  ledgers,  and  stoves. 

When  his  heart  breaks  away  from  the  brokers  and  banks, 

And  kneels  in  its  own  private  shrine  to  give  thanks, 

There's  a  genial  manliness  in  him  that  earns 

Our  sincerest  respect,  (read,  for  instance,  his  'Burns,') 

And  we  can't  but  regret,  (seek  excuse  where  we  may) 

That  so  much  of  a  man  has  been  peddled  away. 

In  1820  Halleck  was  called  to  mourn  the  death  of  his 
friend  Drake,  and  the  beautiful  lines  on  his  loss,  beginning 

"  Green  be  the  turf  above  thee 
Friend  of  my  better  days," 

are  too  well  known  to  need  more  than  a  passing  reference. 
They  are  serious  and  pathetic.  Death,  however,  brings  to  his 
mind  only  the  idea  of  loss.  It  is  the  departure  of  his  friend, 
the  cessation  of  the  hours  of  comradeship  that  is  in  the  poet's 
mind.  He  takes  no  thought  of  the  solemn  mystery,  but  lays 
his  myrtle  leaf  on  the  grave  with  the  tender  regret  that  is 
usually  the  slow  result  of  time.  There  is  not  heard  the  "  hail 
and  farewell"  that  rings  in  the  pathetic  lyric  cry  of  Catullus 
at  the  grave  of  his  friend,  but  the  farewell  only.  This  limi- 
tation to  conventional  sentiment,  gracefully  illuminated  and 
simply  definable,  but  lacking  the  vague  and  haunting  suggest- 
iveness  of  the  higher  forms,  of  art,  is  characteristic  of  the 
literature  and  thought  of  the  period. 

In  the  summer  of  1822  Halleck  went  to  Europe.  He  car- 
ried letters  to  Byron,  Southey,  Campbell,  Wordsworth,  Lafay- 
ette, Tallyrand  and  many  others,  and  a  letter  of  credit  to  all 
he  met  in  his  poetic  reputation  and  in  his  geniality  and  high- 
bred courtesy.  Many  of  these  he  was  not  so  fortunate  as  to 
meet  and  he  never  obtruded  himself  on  others.  He  saw 
Coleridge  in  a  book  store,  but  from  shyness  or  whim  refused 
to  be  presented  to  him,  and  thus  missed  the  personal  acquaint- 
ance of  the  only  true  poet  he  ever  saw. 

It  seems  unaccountable  to  find  in  Halleck's  correspondence 
no  reference  to  Keats  or  Shelley,  the  young  poets  of  the  day, 
whom  we  would  suppose  he  would  have  been  the  most  eager 


IDS 

to  know.  He  saw  England  and  Scotland  under  the  best  aus- 
pices, and  dined  in  Edinburgh  with  Blackwood  and  with  the 
Ettrick  Shepherd  and  Balantyne,  the  friend  and  unlucky 
partner  of  Scott.  To  this  journey  we  owe  the  admirable 
verses  on  Burns  and  those  on  Alnwick  Castle,  the  ancestral 
home  of  the  Percys.  In  these  Halleck  appears  at  his  very 
best.  The  memory  of  feudal  greatness  appeals  strongly  to 
thoughtful  Americans,  for  mediaeval  England  belongs  as  much 
to  us  as  it  does  to  Englishmen.  The  Georges  and  their  de- 
scendants belong  to  them  alone,  and  they  are  welcome  to 
them,  but  the  sixteenth  century  barons,  the  Scottish  and 
English  chivalry  who  fought  at  Flodden  are  of  the  primitive 
stock  before  the  vigorous  seventeenth  century  Puritan  shoot 
had  been  transplanted  to  our  gritty  soil.  Halleck  views  the 
stately  border  castle  very  much  in  the  spirit  of  Scott.  He 
dwells  on  the  picturesque,  poetic  features,  giving  them,  we 
must  own,  a  slightly  theatrical  color,  but  sometimes  hitting 
the  essential,  underlying  poetry  of  the  feudal  society  in  one 
of  its  aspects,  which  is  often  obscured  by  the  exact,  careful, 
historical  analysis  of  to-day. 

Soon  after  his  return  he  wrote  the  spirited  martial  lyric 
"  Marco  Bozzaris."  This  poem  is  slightly  vulgarized  to  the 
present  generation,  from  the  fact  that  most  of  us  have  mur- 
dered it  years  ago  on  the  platforms  of  school  exhibitions,  but 
there  is  too  much  poetic  fire  in  it  to  be  quenched  by  multi- 
tudinous slaughters  by  the  innocents.  It  is  a  noble  ode,  and 
the  ode  is  a  form  in  which  the  English  language  has  few  great 
poems  to  show.  It  is  of  the  essence,  of  an  ode  to  be  varied 
in  movement,  but  vigorous  and  declamatory  ;  to  appeal  to 
some  one  of  the  broad,  general  sentiments  of  humanity,  and 
to  glow  throughout  with  a  Pindaric  fervor.  We  have  the  arti- 
ficial odes  of  Gray,  Wordsworth  on  "  Intimations  of  Immor- 
tality felt  in  Childhood,"  Milton's  "  Hymn  of  the  Nativity," 
Tennyson's  "Ode  on  the  Death  of  the  Duke,"  Shelley's  "Ode  to 
Liberty,"  and  one  or  two  other  great  odes.  Among  these, 
for  the  dithyrambic  quality  of  ringing  music,  for  rush,  fire, 
and  enthusiasm,  Halleck's  "  Marco  Bozzarris"  is  not  the  least. 
The  public,  the  ultimate  judge  of  poetry,  took  it  at  once  into 


t  106 

favor  and  gave  it  the  seal  of  its  approval.  Who  can  say  how 
many  American  boys  have  received  inspiration  to  courage 
and  patriotic  sacrifice  from  these  vigorous  lines  and  have 
thereafter  sided  with  the  Greek  against  the  Turk?  And  a 
country  that  gets  all  its  boys  ranged  on  the  side  of  the  Greek 
and  solid  against  the  "  unspeakable  Turk  "  will  not  lack  for 
defenders  when  its  own  nationality  is  assailed. 

Conservatism  is  fatal  to  poetry,  for  of  all  the  arts  poetrv 
most  needs  a  free  atmosphere.  All  our  great  poets  have  been 
lovers  of  liberty  and  have  sympathized  in  the  risings  of 
oppressed  nationalities.  The  devil  has  written  some  good 
music,  I  am  told,  and  the  beautiful  art  of  painting  has  some- 
times been  pressed  into  his  service,  but  he  has  never  been 
able  to  hire  any  one  to  write  good  poetry  for  him,  at  least  not 
in  the  English  language.  If  poetry  is  slavish  or  reactionary 
in  spirit  it  ceases  to  be  poetry.  Coleridge,  Shelley,  Words- 
worth in  his  youth,  were  all  apostles  of  freedom.  Byron 
rises  to  the  height  of  seriousness  in  his  sympathy  with  the 
struggle  in  Greece,  and  his  death  in  her  service  goes  far  to 
redeem  a  life  of  shallow  cynicism.  Robert  Browning's  and 
Mrs.  Browning's  enthusiasm  for  the  cause  of  Italian  nation- 
ality is  another  instance  to  prove  that  the  poet  draws  his  most 
creative  inspiration  from  a  generous  sympathy  with  the 
oppressed.  The  dying  Heine  said :  "  Lay  a  sword  on  my 
coffin  and  say  that  I  was  a  soldier  in  the  army  of  freedom." 
It  is  true  that  there  is  no  trace  in  the  Shakespeare  oflhe 
democratic  idea,  but  the  idea  had  then  no  historic  embodi- 
ment, and  those  who  mirror  most  perfectly  the  life  of  their 
age  look  but  a  little  way  into  the  future.  Even  no.w,  when 
the  time  is  pregnant  with  great  social  seminal  principles, 
when  law  is  in  many  important  bearings  preverted,  so  that  it 
is  no  longer  solely  a  protector,  but  sometimes  an  agent  of 
oppression  and  overripe  conservatism,  when  we  feel  that 
society  has  in  many  regards  outgrown  the  law,  when  we  recog- 
nize that  the  great  principle  of  democracy  is  about  to  take  on 
a  new  form  in  both  of  the  Anglo-Saxon  nations,  there  is  no 
one  who  can  put  into  words  the  vague  uneasiness  of  men,  or 
who  can  formulate  even  in  philosophical  language  the  prob- 


107 

able  outcome  of  forces  whose  presence  and  inevitable  power 
we  all  acknowledge.  A  great  social  principle  is  frequently  so 
different  in  its  historical  development  from  what  the  intellect 
of  the  age  conceives  that  it  ought  to  be,  it  is  so  obscured  in 
its  practical  form  by  the  passions  and  prejudices  men  draw 
from  the  past,  it  is  apparently  so  indifferent  to  the  temporary 
domination  of  evil  forces,  its  feeble  twilight  is  so  often 
obscured  by  the  fogs  of  superstition,  that  the  children  of  this 
world  say  confidently  that  there  is  no  sun.  What  wonder, 
then,  if  even  the  children  of  light  despair  of  the  sun's  rising. 
But  the  great  idea  moves  forward  still,  though  the  crests  of 
its  waves  be  centuries,  yes,  tens  of  centuries,  apart,  and  though 
Thomas  Carlyle  may  expend  in  profitless  and  negative  scorn 
the  force  that  should  have  been  given  to  an  effort,  however 
humble,  to  elevate  and  meliorate  society,  and  John  Henry 
Newman  surrender  his  free  will  to  an  imperious  organization, 
and  John  Ruskin  declare  the  past  to  be  far  better  and  more 
beautiful  than  the  present,  and  Alfred  Tennyson  hide  his 
head  in  his  coronet  and  see  in  a  survey  of  sixty  years  no  pro- 
gress in  the  world  towards  righteousness.  There  is  nothing 
more  characteristic  of  the  great  principle  of  evolution  than 
that  it  has  its  long  periods  of  incubation,  when  something 
besides  it  or  behind  it,  but  greater  than  it,  holds  it  in  check 
till  the  appointed  time.  But  these  periods  are  depressing  to 
the  enthusiasm  of  humanity  and  react  in  countless  ways  on 
our  faith  in  the  present,  and  make  us  forget  that  it  is 
our  present  and  God's  present.  And  thus  it  was  that  the  poet 
Halleck,  though  stirred  by  the  struggle  for  freedom  on  classic 
soil,  did  not  thoroughly  sympathize  with  the  democratic  spirit> 
and  failed,  as  so  many  Americans  did  then  and  do  now,  to 
comprehend  his  country.  I  do  not  know  to  what  political 
party  he  belonged — that  is  a  matter  of  little  consequence — 
but  he  was  essentially  a  representative  of  the  old-time  gen- 
tility. He  even  seems  to  have  thought  the  monarchical  form 
of  government  superior  to  the  republican.  It  is  characteristic 
of  him  that  when  he  heard  Thackeray's  lecture  on  George  IV., 
he  left  the  hall  in  indignation  before  the  reading  was  con- 
cluded, unwilling  to  hear  the  first  gentleman  in  Europe  sati- 


io8 

rized.  He  was  proud  of  his  country,  no  doubt,  and  in  his 
poems  on  "Connecticut,"  and  on  "The  Field  of  the  grounded 
Arms,"  it  is  plain  that  he  regards  it  with  affection  and  respect- 
But  as  one  may  be  a  conscientious  and  earnest  member  of  a 
Christian  church  without  taking  up  the  underlying  principles 
of  Christianity — though  no  doubt  a  better  man  for  the  con- 
nection— so  one  may  be  an  educated  American  without 
entirely  comprehending  what  that  means.  Thus  Halleck's 
Americanism  is  a  different  thing  from  Lowell's  Americanism, 
just  as  there  is  a  difference  between  Cardinal  Newman's 
Christianity  and  that  of  the  average  believer.  There  is  m 
his  treatment  of  the  national  theme  a  lack  of  earnestness  and 
philosophical  insight  which  is  Halleck's  weakness.  He  does 
not  seem  to  have  had  the  true  sympathy  with  the  masses. 
But  the  common  people  are  now  humanity,  and  he  who  misses 
the  brotherhood  of  man  has  no  message  to  this  age.  It  is 
idle  to  say  that  excellence  in  art  does  not  depend  on  the  sub- 
ject treated.  The  subject  acts  on  and  influences  the  artist, 
and  keeps  him  in  its  own  region  of  petty  and  graceful  or  of 
noble  thought.  The  quality  of  his  work  rises  unconsciously 
with  the  worth  of  his  aim.  Burns  is  a  poet  not  more  from 
his  music  than  from  his  broad  communal  sympathy.  The 
poet  is  a  partizan,  not  a  judicial  officer;  but  he  must  be  on 
the  right  side.  To  the  position  of  national  poet  Halleck  can- 
not aspire.  If  we  could  unite  the  virile  qualities  of  Whitman 
to  the  taste,  melody,  and  elegance  of  Halleck,  then  we  should 
have  the  great  national  poet,  whose  words  a  million  men 
would  carry  in  their  hearts. 

Halleck  in  his  old  age  in  this  village  must  have  been  a  fig- 
ure at  once  pathetic  and  dignified.  He  seems  to  have 
accepted  his  cramped  circumstances  with  uncomplaining  stoi- 
cism. He  found  comfort  in  literature  and  in  his  memories,  and 
he  is  to  be  forgiven  if  he  sometimes  resorted  to  temporary 
means  of  artificial  forgetfulness.  After  his  death  his  friends 
and  admirers  raised  a  monument  in  your  graveyard  and  a 
monument  in  Central  Park  to  his  memory.  If  a  portion  of 
the  fund  so  expended  could  have  been  anticipated,  it  might 
have  given  his  old  age  the  comforts  to  which  a  life  of  hard 


work  entitled  him,  and  his  poems  would  have  been  a  sufficient 
memorial.  This  neglect  of  the  poet  by  the  contemporary 
public  until  after  his  death  had  made  recognition  useless  to 
him,  recalls  Moore's  forcible  lines  on  the  funeral  of  Sheridan  : 

"  How  proud  they  can  press  to  the  funeral  array 

Of  the  man  whom  they  shunned  in  his  sickness  and  sorrow; 
For  bailiff's  shall  take  his  last  blanket  to-day 

Whose  pall  shall  be  borne  up  by  nobles  to-morrow.'* 

A  dignified,  courteous  gentleman  of  the  old  school  not  un- 
frequently  had  a  quality  which  poverty  could  not  obscure. 
Halleck  never  forgot  that  he  was  a  gentleman.  He  seems  to 
have  been  more  than  merely  courteous,  which,  indeed,  is  often 
but  a  ceremonious  habit.  He  was  essentially  and  thoroughly 
kindly. '  His  unfailing,  punctilious  deference  to  women  might 
have  resulted  from  the  acquisition  of  traditionary  manners  in 
his  youth,  but  his  kindness  to  children,  the  gentleness  with 
which  he  entered  with  them  into  their  childish  joys  and  sor- 
rows, does  not  belong  to  the  period  of  our  fathers  but  to  true 
humanity  in  all  periods.  An  example  of  geniality  and  urban- 
ity is  a  valuable  social  influence  in  any  community,  but  it  is 
an  especially'valuable  one  in  a  New  England  village.  For 
the  New  Englander's  most  radical  quality  is  reticence.  He 
has  assimilated  Burns'  advice  to 

"  Keek  through  every  other  man 
Wi  sharpened,  slee  inspection," 

without  letting  the  other  man  "keek"  through  him.  We 
have  come  to  consider  effusiveness  as  a  mark  of  insincerity, 
and  we  lose  the  educating  force  of  social  intercourse  because 
every  man  holds  himself  tenaciously  secret.  If  a  man  speaks 
without  reserve  we  say,  in  the  common  phrase,  that  he  is 
"  giving  himself  away,"  and  so  he  is,  for  he  gets  no  return 
communication.  An  American  crowd  is  slow  to  warm  col- 
lectively, though  perhaps  on  that  very  account  the  heat  is 
more  intense  when  it  is  really  diffused.  There  is  then  no 
flash  in  the  pan  but  an  explosion  of  giant  powder.  But  indi- 
vidually the  New  Englander  is  too  reserved,  even  in  youth,  to 
reach  the  Jull  measure  of  social  power  to  which  his  brains 
entitle  him.  There  was  a  set  of  men  in  the  early  years  of  this 


110 

century,  and  of  this  class  Halleck  is  a  type,  who  cultivated 
the  art  of  conversation,  who  recognized  the  forms  of  social 
intercourse  to  be  a  power — perhaps  not  so  important  a  factor 
in  the  world  as  the  Frenchman  considers  them,  but,  at  least, 
something  which  added  materially  to  the  pleasures  and  charms 
of  life.  Now,  the  ease  of  communication  brought  about  by 
railroads,  and  the  narrowing  of  thought  and  interests  brought 
about  by  the  mechanical  division  of  labor,  the  multiplication 
of  trifling  reading  matter  brought  about  by  the  periodical 
press,  and  the  gradual  segregation  of  society  into  classes 
brought  about  by  the  unequal  division  of  property,  all  tend  to 
weaken  the  neighborhood  tie  and  to  make  the  individual  char- 
acter less  rich  and  original,  and  individual  idiosyncracies  ridic- 
ulous in  our  eyes.  So  we  find  in  Halleck  and  his  contempo- 
raries a  geniality  and  urbanity  which  we  lack  now,  which  it 
is  pleasant  to  contemplate.  The  year  1825  must  have  been  a 
delightful  time.  Few  modern  conveniences  had  been  in- 
vented. Life  was  unscientific.  There  were  no  elective  courses 
in  our  colleges.  Education  was  simple  and  it  did  not  consist 
in  stuffing  but  in  educing  character.  There  was  plenty  for 
every  one  to  do,  and  an  apparently  unlimited  field  for  expan- 
sion. New  England  was  inhabited  by  New  Englanders,  and 
the  fertile  fields  of  Ohio  and  Illinois  stood  ready  for  the 
younger  generation  eager  to  carve  its  fortune.  The  great 
west  lay  conveniently,  just  beyond  the  state  of  New  York. 
The  population  was  substantially  homogeneous  in  blood  and 
faith  and  political  temper.  There  was  no  Irish  vote  and  no 
German  vote  and  no  independent  vote.  Rural  life  was  still 
loved  and  appreciated.  The  home  was  more  permanent  than 
it  is  now  and  was  a  more  valued  and  central  feature  in  life. 
The  age  had  a  firm  physical  basis.  Nervous  prostration  was 
unknown.  Doubt,  uncertainty,  unrest  had  not  yet  entered 
deeply  into  the  wholesome  soul  of  the  world.  Intemperance 
was,  perhaps,  more  general,  but  it  did  not  destroy  the  nervous 
system  then  as  it  does  now.  Of  course,  that  age  had  its  own 
hypocrites  and  quacks  and  defaulters — humanity  does  not  vary 
much  in  its  criminal  crops — but  it  had  a  simple,  robust,  idylic 
quality  which  it  is  pleasant  to  find  surviving  in  some  of  our 


Ill 

old  Connecticut  towns  like  Guilford  and  Milford  and  Litch- 
field  and  old  Stratford.  And  that  old-fashioned,  provincial 
quality  we  find  in  our  poet,  Fitz-Greene  Halleck. 

The  temper  of  the  age  has  changed.  We  feel  a  new  en- 
vironment at  every  point.  The  faith  of  the  Puritans  has 
taken  on  a  new  phase.  The  sons  of  the  Puritans  have  left 
the  old  homesteads  and  the  old  habits.  Life  has  become 
complex,  belief  variegated,  civilization  luxurious,  temper 
cynical.  We  of  this  day  pass  through  life  like  travelers  in 
luxurious  parlor  cars,  whisked  rapidly  from  starting  point  to 
destination  by  machinery.  The  old  leisurely  fashion  gave 
men  more  time  to  become  acquainted  with  their  fellow  trav- 
elers, and  to  observe  the  scenery  by  the  way,  which  after  all, 
is  the  true  aim  of  life,  as  of  any  other  journey. 

However,  it  is  useless  to  regret  the  sensible  and  rational 
features  of  that  unexciting  life,  or  to  wish  that  we  could  re- 
produce them.  The  real  merit  of  that  age  lay  in  the  fact 
that  it  was  preparatory  for  the  more  ample  days  to  come. 
We  waste  our  strength  if  we  regret  any  one  year,  or  repine 
because  our  lot  did  not  fall  in  a  more  hopeful  time.  But  it  is 
still  worse  to  fall  into  the  mistake  of  thinking  that  our  age  is 
essentially  superior  to  that  of  our  fathers,  because  it  is  an  age 
of  more  conveniences  and  luxuries.  In  so  far  as  it  is  an  age 
of  more  humanity,  so  far  it  is  a  better  age.  But  it  is  not  a 
more  beautiful  age.  Chromo  lithography,  aniline  dies,  electric 
lights,  and  nickel  plate  do  not  beautify  life.  Machinery  can't 
accomplish  everything.  Great  things  are  done  by  simple 
means.  Better  poetry  has  been  written  with  a  quill  than 
will  ever  flow  from  the  intermittent  geyser  of  a  fountain  pen. 
Do  not  think  this  pessimistic,  for  in  my  mind  at  the  moment 
was  Shakespeare's  pen,  which  Heminge  and  Condell  tell  us 
flowed  with  such  facility  that  "  we  scarce  received  from  him  a 
blot  in  his  papers." 

The  work  of  our  fathers  was  good  in  its  day.  It  was  preg- 
nant with  material  progress.  They  left  us  greater  historic 
figures  than  •  Halleck's,  but  few  more  interesting  ones  than 
that  of  this  courteous  gentleman  of  Guilford,  the  author  of 
"  Marco  Bozzaris." 


EXTRACTS 

FROM   HALLECK'S    "CONNECTICUT." 

READ   BY 

HON.  LEWIS  H.   STEINER,   M.   D.,   OF  BALTLMORE,  MD. 


[Dr.   Steiner  is  son-in-law    of    Hon.    Ralph   D.     Smith,    the  Historian  of 

Guilford.] 


LADIES  AND  GENTLEMEN  : 

Of  all  those  who  lovingly  claim  to  be  children  of  Guilford 
birth, — of  all  those  whom  old  Guilford  proudly  owns  as  her 
children,  no  one  is  more  widely  known  than  the  American 
poet,  Fitz-Greene  Halleck.  Wherever  English  poetry  is 
read,  his  lines  occupy  a  high  place  in  the  esteem  of  those  who 
appreciate  graceful  rhyme  or  stirring  martial  rhythm. 

Here,  where  he  spent  his  earlier  and  later  years,  he  learned 
to  appreciate  to  the  fujl  the  sturdy  peculiarities  of  his  fellow 
citizens, — to  discern  the  elements  that  made  them  good,  loyal 
citizens  at  home  and  distinguished  men  and  woman  abroad. 
His  views  he  embodied  in  lines,  which,  it  is  deemed  fitting, 
should  be  read  on  this  memorable  occasion. 

I  feel  it  no  small  honor  to  be  asked  to  voice  Halleck's 
words  to  this  assembly  of  natives  and  descendants  of  natives 
of  old  Guilford.  In  body  he  lived  among  you.  You  guard 
his  mortal  remains  in  your  lovely  Alderbrook  Cemetery,  but 
his  words  belong  to  a  larger  army  of  admirers,  and,  as  one  of 
them  (not  English  but  of  German  Reformation  stock)  from 
a  distant  State,  although  bound  by  many  a  tender  tie  to  your 
Town,  I  now  ask  your  attention  to  some  stanzas  on  "CON- 
NECTICUT "  written  by  him,  who  was 

"  One  of  the  few,  the  immortal  names 
That  were  not  born  to  die." 


Still  her  gray  rocks  tower  above  the  sea 
That  crouches  at  their  feet,  a  conquered  wave; 

Tis  a  rough  land  of  earth,  and  stone,  and  tree, 
Where  breathes  no  castled  lord  or  cabined  slave; 

Where  thoughts,  and  tongues,  and  hands  are  bold  and  free, 
And  friends  will  find  a  welcome,  foes  a  grave; 

And  where  none  kneel,  save  when  to  Heaven  they  pray, 

Nor  even  then,  unless  in  their  own  way. 


Theirs  is  a  pure  republic,  wild,  yet  strong, 
A  '•  fierce  democracie,"  where  all  are  true 

To  what  themselves  have  voted — right  or  wrong — 
And  to  their  laws  denominated  blue; 

If  red,  they  might  to  Draco's  code  belong:) 
A  vestal  state,  which  power  could  not  subdue, 

Nor  promise  win — like  her  own  eagle's  nest, 

Sacred — the  San  Marino  of  the  West. 


in. 

A  justice  of  the  pe'ace,  for  the  time  being, 

They  bow  to,  but  may  turn  him  out  next  year; 

They  reverence  their  priest,  but  disagreeing 
In  price  or  creed,  dismiss  him  without  fear; 

They  have  a  natural  talent  for  forseeing 

And  knowing  all  things  ;  and  should  Park  appear 

From  his  long  tour  in  Africa,  to  show 

The  Niger's  source,  they'd  meet  him  with — "  we  know." 


They  love  their  land,  because  it  is  their  own, 
And  scorn  to  give  aught  other  reason  why; 

Would  shake  hands  with  a  king  upon  his  throne, 
And  think  it  kindness  to  his  majesty; 

A  stubborn  race,  fearing  and  flattering  none. 
Such  are  they  nurtured,  such  they  live  and  die; 

All — but  a  few  apostates,  who  are  meddling 

With  merchandise,  pounds,  shillings,  pence,  and  peddling; 


Or  wandering  through  the  Southern  countries  teaching 
The  ABC  from  Webster's  spelling-book; 

Gallant  and  godly,  making  love  and  preaching, 
And  gaining  by  what  they  call  "  hook  and  crook," 


And  what  the  moralists  call  over  reaching, 

A  decent  living.     The  Virginians  look 
Upon  them  with  as  favorable  eyes 
As  Gabriel  on  the  devil  in  paradise. 


But  these  are  but  their  outcasts.      View  them  near 
At  home,  where  all  their  worth  and  pride  is  placed; 

And  there  their  hospitable  fires  burn  clear, 

And  there  the  lowliest  farmhouse  hearth  is  graced 

With  manly  hearts,  in  piety  sincere, 

Faithful  in  love,  in  honor  stern  and  chaste, 

In  friendship  warm  and  true,  in  danger  brave. 

Beloved  in  life,  and  sainted  in  the  grave. 


And  minds  have  there  been  nurtured,  whose  control 

Is  felt  even  in  their  nation's  destiny; 
Men  who  swayed  senates  with  a  statesman's  soul, 

And  looked  on  armies  with  a  leader's  eye; 
Names  that  adorn  and  dignify  the  scroll, 

Whose  leaves  contain  their  country's  history, 
And  tales  of  love  and  war — listen  to  one 
Of  the  Green-Mountaineer — the  Stark  of  Bennington. 


When  on  that  field  his  band  the  Hessians  fought, 
Briefly  he  spoke  before  the  fight  began; 

"  Soldiers  !     Those  German  gentlemen  are  bought 
For  four  pounds  eight  and  sevenpence  per  man, 

By  England's  kin^  ;  a  bargain,  as  is  thought. 

Are  we  worth  more  ?     Let's  prove  it  now  we  can; 

For  we  must  beat  them,  boys,  ere  set  of  sun, 

OR  MARY  STARR'S  A  WIDOW."     It  was  done. 


Hers  are  not  Tempe's  nor  Arcadia's  spring, 
Nor  the  long  summer  of  Cathayan  vales, 

The  vines,  the  flowers,  the  air,  the  skies,  that  fling 
Such  wild  enchantment  o'er  Boccaccio's  tales 

Of  Florence  and  the  Arno;    yet  the  wing  of 
Life's  best  angel,  Health,  is  on  her  gales 

Through  sun  and  snow;  and  in  the  autumn-time 

Earth  has  no  purer  and  no  lovelier  clime. 


X. 

Her  clear,  warm  heaven  at  noon — the  mist  that  shrouds 
Her  twilight  hills — her  cool  and  starry  eves, 

The  glorious  splendor  of  her  sunset  clouds, 
The  rainbow  beauty  of  her  forest-leaves, 

Come  o'er  the  eye,  in  solitude  and  crowds, 
Where'er  his  web  of  song  her  poet  weaves; 

And  his  mind's  brightest  vision  but  displays 

The  autumn  scenery  of  his  boyhood's  days. 


And  when  you  dream  of  woman,  and  her  love; 

Her  truth,  her  tenderness,  her  gentle  power; 
The  maiden  listening  in  the  moonlight  grove, 

The  mother  smiling  on  her  infant's  bower; 
Forms,  features,  worshipped  while  we  breathe  or  move, 

Be  by  some  spirit  of  your  dreaming  hour 
Borne,  like  Loretto's  chapel,  through  the  air 
To  the  green  land  I  sing,  then  wake,  you'll  find  them  there. 


XXIII. 

And  who  were  they,  our  fathers?     In  their  veins 
Ran  the  best  blood  of  England's  gentlemen; 

Her  bravest  in  the  strife  on  battle  plains, 
Her  wisest  in  the  strife  of  voice  and  pen; 

Her  holiest,  teaching,  in  her  holiest  fanes, 
The  lore  that  led  to  martyrdom;  and  when 

On  this  side  ocean  slept  their  wearied  sails, 

And  their  toil-bells  woke  up  our  thousand  hills  and  dales, 


Shamed  they  their  fathers?     Ask  the  village-spires 
Above  their  Sabbath-homes  of  praise  and  prayer; 

Ask  of  their  children's  happy  household-fires, 
And  happier  harvest  noons;  ask  summer's  air. 

Made  merry  by  young  voices,  when  the  wires 
Of  their  school-cages  are  unloosed,  and  dare 

Their  slanderers'  breath  to  blight  the  memory 

That  o'er  their  graves  is  "  growing  green  to  see  !  " 


Beneath  thy  Star,  as  one  of  the  THIRTEEN, 

Land  of  my  lay  !  through  many  a  battle's  night 

Thy  gallant  men  stepped  steady  and  serene, 
To  that  war-music's  stern  and  strong  delight, 

Where  bayonets  clinched  above  the  trampled  green, 
Where  sabres  grappled  in  the  ocean  fight; 

In  siege,  in  storm,  on  deck  or  rampart,  there 

They  hunted  the  wolf  Danger  to  his  lair, 

And  sought  and  won  sweet  Peace,  and  wreaths  for  Honor's  hair! 


And  with  thy  smiles,  sweet  Peace,  came  woman's  bringing 

The  Eden-sunshine  of  her  welcome  kiss, 
And  lovers'  flutes,  and  children's  voices  singing 

The  maiden's  promised,  matron's  perfect  bliss, 
And  heart  and  home-bells  blending  with  their  singing 

Thank-offerings  borne  to  holier  worlds  than  this, 
And  the  proud  green  of  Glory's  laurel-leaves, 
And  gold,  the  gift  to  Peace,  of  Plenty's  summer  sheaves. 


GUILFORD  AND   MADISON  IN  LITERATURE. 

BY 

HENRY  P.   ROBINSON,  OF  GUILFORD. 


[Mr.    Robinson  is  a    descendant  of   Thomas    Robinson,    1666,    and   Rev. 
Henry  Whitfield,  1639.] 


We  draw  our  lineage  in  literature  from  the  great  era  in 
English  letters,  the  era  of  Bacon,  Shakespeare,  Milton.  Our 
first  writer,  Henry  Whitfield,  a  native  of  Mortlake  in  Surrey, 
born  in  1597,  was  contemporary  with  "  King"  Elizabeth,  rare 
Ben  Jonson,  Sir  Thomas  Brown.  When  Whitfield,  a  gradu- 
ate of  Oxford,  was  ordained  in  1618,  the  slab  was  just  laid 
down  (1616)  over  Shakespeare's  grave;  a  little  later  Milton, 
fair  and  graceful,  was  "  the  lady  "  at  Christ  College,  Cam- 
bridge (1625)  and  soon  after  Whitfield  returned  from  New 
England  (1650),  Sir  Isaac  Newton  was  a  schoolboy,  flying 
kites  by  night  with  lighted  paper  lanterns  attached  to  frighten 
the  natives  of  Lincolnshire. 

Guilford  was  born  with  a  book  in  her  hand,  for  the 
leader  of  the  Guilford  colony,  Reverend  Henry  Whitfield, 
"  preacher  of  God's  word  at  Ockley  in  Surrey,"  had  published 
in  1634  a  second  edition  of  "  Some  Helpes  to  stirre  up  to 
Christian  Duties." 

These  are  a  little  bundle  of  sermonettes,  dedicated  to  Lord 
Brooke,  full  of  quaint  conceits  and  poesies,  yet  simple,  search- 
ing and  sympathetic.  He  draws  a  minature  of  the  world,  true 
for  all  time : 

"The  world  is  as  a  great  Ant  or  Emit  Hill,  where  there 
are  multitudes  of  those  busie  creatures,  carrying  and  recarry- 
ing  strawes,  stubble  and  other  such  luggage  and  every  one 
busie  in  doing  something  and  intent  to  adde  and  bring  to  the 
heape :  So  in  this  world  there  is  a  mighty  and  general  busi- 


nesse,  an  earnest  trudging  about,  a  continued  solicitousnesse, 
plotting  and  working  upon  the  face  of  the  earth :  The  Time- 
server  is  busie  to  fit  his  sailes  to  every  wiijd,  marks  what  is 
in  grace  and  fashion  with  the  times,  and  studies  how  he  may 
please  the  most.  The  deepe  and  clung-headed  politician,  who 
dwels,  many  times,  the  next  door  to  Atheisme,  is  busie  in 
wheeling  about  his  owne  ends,  is  dark  in  his  ways  and  usually 
like  a  boatman  looks  one  way  and  rowes  another.  The  Am- 
bitious man  puts  on  Absolon's  behavior,  is  busie  in  seeking 
applause  and  respect  and  how  he  may  be  carried  aloft,  as  a 
feather,  upon  the  breath  of  men.  The  Voluptuous  man  is 
busie  to  draw  out  the  quintessence  of  all  sinnes  and  vanities ; 
to  sucke  the  sweet  out  of  them  to  array  himself  like  a  child 
of  Paradise  and  to  have  his  part  in  all  the  pleasures  of  nature." 

In  1651-52  a  series  of  letters,  gathered  up  by  Whitfield  on 
his  way  to  England,  were  published  in  London,  addressed  by 
Mayhew,  Eliot  and  others  "  To  the  Parliament  and  Council 
of  State  in  England,"  concerning  Gospel  work  among  the 
Indians  in  New  England.  Whitfield  wrote  an  introduction  to 
these  letters,  entitled  "The  light  appearing  more  and  more 
unto  the  perfect  day  ;  "  he  wrote  also  a  conclusion,  entitled 
"  Strength  out  of  weakness,  or  a  glorious  manifestation  of  the 
further  progress  of  the  gospel  amongst  the  Indians." 

He  says  :  "  And  now  the  way  being  cleared,  I  proceed  to 
make  my  humble  request  to  your  honors  respecting  the  work 
among  the  Indians,  and  as  you  have  given  it  feet  so  you 
would  give  it  wings  that  it  may  get  above  all  difficulties  which 
may  be  cast  in  the  way.  Truly  the  work  is  honorable  and 
worthy  of  your  care  and  inmost  affections  and  to  be  laid  in 
your  bosomes,  that  it  may  feel  the  warmth  and  influence  of 
your  favor  and  best  respects  ;  it  tending  so  much  to  the  good 
of  the  souls  of  these  poor  wild  creatures,  multitudes  of  them 
being  under  the  power  of  Satan  and  going  up  and  downe  with 
the  chains  of  darknesse,  rattling  at  their  heels."  Mr.  Whit- 
field, returning  to  England,  settled  as  a  pastor  in  Winchester, 
where  so  many  royal  folk  are  buried,  the  soil  is  said  to  be 
composed  of  the  dust  of  kings  and  queens,  and  in  the  fall  of 
1657  he  gave  his  own  body  to  its  sacred  earth. 


Reverend  John  Higginson,  minister  in  Guilford,  1641-1659 
[born  in  Claybrook,  Leicester,  1616,  deceased  Dec.  9,  1708,] 
published  an  election  sermon  (1663)  and  other  discourses; 
also  "An  attestation  to  the  Church  History  of  New  England 
by  Cotton  Mather,"  (the  famous  Magnalia)  which  was  printed 
in  the  introduction.  I  quote  from  it  the  noble  inscription  to 
Cotton  Mather  translated  from  the  Latin,  dated  Salem,  Janu- 
ary 25,  1697. 

"  O  venerable  Mather,  loved  of  God, 

Rejoice  to  see  that  where  thy  feet  have  trod, 
A  blessed  train  of  Christian  sons  are  seen 

All  pressing  on  to  be  where  thou  hast  been. 
God  grant  that  endless  be  the  holy  line 

Of  those  who  love  and  do  his  work,  divine! 
Thou,  Cotton,  shining  from  such  heavenly  heights, 

Amid  a  brotherhood  of  kindred  lights, 
Follow  thy  sires,  whom  God  hath  guided  home, 

Thyself  a  morning-star  to  those  who  yet  shall  come." 

Reverend  Joseph  Eliot,  son  of  the  apostle  [born  Roxbury, 
Mass.,  Dec.  20,  1638;  Harvard  College,  1658;  deceased  May 
24,  1694],  came  into  the  pastorate  in  1664.  I  quote  from  a 
letter  of  Joseph  to  his  brother  Benjamin  of  Roxbury: 


,   May  18,   1664. 

Dear  Brother:  Yours  I  received  and  thought  on.  The  question  is,  how 
to  live  in  this  world  so  as  to  live  in  heaven?  It  is  hard  to  keep  the  helm 
up  among  so  many  cross  winds  and  eddies  and  outland  and  boarding  of 
creatures  as  we  meet  withal  upon  this  sea  of  glass  and  fire. 
Creature  smiles  stop  and  intice  away  the  affections  from  Jesus  Christ. 
Creature  frowns  encompass  and  tempestuate  the  spirit,  that  it  thinks  it 
doth  well  to  be  angry.  Both  ways,  grace  is  a  loser.  I  make 

best  way  in  a  low  gale.  A  high  spirit  and  a  high  sail  together  will  be 
dangerous.  Therefore,  I  prepare  to  live  low.  My  way  is  not  to  cast  be- 
forehand, but  to  work  with  God  by  the  day. 

Pray  for  your  own  soul,  pray  for  Jerusalem,  and  pray  hard  for  your  poor 
brother.  J.  E." 

Reverend  John  Cotton,  son  of  the  famous  John,  who 
"  loved  to  sweeten  his  mouth  with  a  piece  of  Calvin  before 
going  to  sleep,"  spent  some  uncertain  time  in  Guilford  about 
1660.  He  had  the  wit  of  a  mocking  bird  to  catch  a  language, 
and  was  linguist  enough  to  pray  in  Indian  at  his  Indian  lec- 
tures, like  Roger  Williams,  who  was  an  excellent  Indian 


I2O 

scholar.  Mr.  Cotton's  more  noticeable  and  unique  literary 
work  was  in  aiding  the  apostle  Eliot  to  correct  the  second 
edition  of  his  Indian  Bible  (1663).  [Born  Plymouth,  Mass., 
March  15,  1639-40.  Harvard  College  1657,  died  Charleston, 
S.  C.,  Sept.  18,  1699.]  Samuel  Hoadly  [born  Guilford,  Conn., 
Sept.  30,  1643,]  educated  at  Edinburgh  and  at  King  James* 
college  there,  published  The  Natural  Method  of  Teaching 
(1698),  which  went  through  eleven  editions  before  1773;  also 
an  edition  of  Phsedrus,  with  notes,  and  one  other  school  book 
of  grammatical  purpose  [London,  1683].  He  was  for  some 
years  a  teacher  in  Kent  and  a  clergyman  without  a  benefice, 
and  died  master  of  the  public  school  in  Norwich,  England, 
where  he  is  buried  with  his  wife  in  St.  Luke's  chapel  in  the 
cathedral.  He  was  also  author  of  two  bishops  of  the  English 
Church;  one  of  whom,  Bishop  Benjamin  Hoadly,  published 
seven  of  his  father's  Latin  letters  to  Graevius  of  Saxony,  a 
celebrated  teacher  of  the  sons  of  lords,  princes  and  kings. 

We  come  now  to  "  a  man  of  pretie  parts,"  of  whom,  if  we 
are  not  proud,  our  stinting  humility  will  'be  the  greater  sin. 
Rev.  Jared  Eliot,  son  of  Rev.  Joseph  (born  Guilford  Novem- 
ber 7,  1685  ;  Yale  College  1706,  and  Fellow  of  Yale;  de- 
ceased April  22,  1763),  was  a  true  son  of  our  soil,  who 
literally  grappled  with  our  Guilford  ground.  We  shall  please  to 
remember  him  for  this  and  for  his  pastorly  "  Essays  upon 
Field  Husbandry  in  New  England  "  (printed  and  sold  by  T. 
Green,  N.  London,  1748;  also  published  entire  by  Edes  & 
Gill,  Queen  street,  Boston,  1760). 

These  six  essays,  written  at  Killingworth  for  winter  evening 
entertainments  (1747-1758),  passed  through  several  editions, 
circulated  in  England,  and  Benjamin  Franklin  showed  his 
wisdom  by  sending  for  fifty  copies  of  the  first  essay. 

Let  us  read  from  them  :  "The  low,  sunken  lands  are  of 
three  kinds,  viz.:  Thick  swamp,  boggy  meadow  and  smooth, 
even  shaking  meadow.  This  last  is  called  cranberry  marsh. 
I  began  last  fall  (1747)  to  drain  another  meadow  of  forty  acres 
up  in  Guilford  woods.  This  was  a  shaking  meadow  ;  a  man 
standing  upon  it  might  shake  the  ground  several  rods  round 
him.  It  seemed  to  be  only  a  strong  sward  of  grass  roots  laid 


121 

over  a  soft  mud  of  the  consistence  of  pancake  batter.  There 
is  reason  to  believe  that  the  shaking  meadows  have  been 
formerly  beaver  ponds.  The  meadow  was  deemed  so  poor 
that  none  would  take  it  up.  I  was  pitied  as  being  about  to 
waste  a  great  deal  of  money,  but  they  comforted  themselves 
that  if  I  spent  it  unprofitably  others  that  stood  in  need  of  it 
would  get  it.  They  are  now  of  another  opinion.  I  ditched 
it,  the  ditch  serving  as  a  fence,  and  then  sowed  red  clover, 
foul  meadow  grass,  English  spear  and  herd  grass.  The  cost 
of  reclaiming  was  twenty  pounds.  If  life  and  health  be  con- 
tinued I  design  to  try  liquorice  roots,  barley,  Cape  Breton 
wheat,  cotton,  indigo  seed  and  wood  for  dyeing  ;  as,  also, 
watermelon  seed,  which  came  originally  from  Arch-Angel,  in 
Russia.  *  *  *  I  found  at  my  farm  at  Guilford  a  sort  of 
shell  sand  equal  to  good  dung.  It  has  produced  five  crops 
and  is  not  yet  spent.  How  long  it  will  last  we  do  not 
know." 

In  the  sixth  essay,  after  much  discourse  about  the  mulberry 
tree,  which  he  recommends  for  silk  culture,  this  man  of  the 
"  chymical  brain  "  sits  down  under  the  expectant  shade  of  the 
mulberry  and  sentimentalizes  as  follows  : 

"  There  is  one  thing  further  that  may  be  an  inducement  to 
plant  these  trees,  as  such  groves  are  proper  places  for  retire- 
ment, study  and  meditation.  *  *  *  The  loneliness  of  a 
grove,  the  solemn  shade,  the  soft  murmur  of  the  air  in  the 
tree  tops,  all  conspire  to  soothe  our  passions,  calm  the  pertur- 
bation of  the  mind,  recover  our  fleeting,  wandering  thoughts 
and  fix  them  on  proper  objects.  Here  is  true  pleasure  and 
serenity  beyond  all  that  pomp  'and  noise  can  give.  Surely  it 
is  not  without  foundation  that  in  all  ages  and  countries  trees 
and  shady  groves  have  been  the  favorite  subjects  of  poets, 
both  heathen  and  divine.  It  is  needless  and  it  would  be  end- 
less to  recite  what  has  been  written  on  this  darling  subject." 

Mr.  Eliot  published  many  sermons,  essays  and  books,  was 
fellow  of  the  Royal  Society  and  corresponding  member  of  the 
London  Society  of  Arts,  and  corresponded  with  Franklin, 
Bishop  Berkeley,  President  Stiles,  John  Bartram,  the  Quaker 
naturalist,  and  others  of  note.  His  letters  in  manuscript  are 
in  the  Yale  University  Library. 


122 

The  cloak,  that  Jared  Eliot  had  swung  hither  and  yon  over 
our  shaking  meadows,  fell  upon  the  sedentary  shoulders  of 
Reverend  Samuel  Johnson,  his  pupil,  our  great  "  studie- 
man ;  "  first  president  of  Columbia  College,*  professor  of 
belles  lettres  and  rhetoric  ;  a  linguist,  who  could  think  in 
Hebrew  and  with  actual  scholarly  enthusiasm  enough  to  wish 
to  set  up  the  study  of  Hebrew  in  America.  And  how  it  would 
have  delighted  Moses  and  the  children  of  Israel  to  see  this 
little  slip  of  a  Hebrew  grammar,  which  he  prepared  for  that 
purpose  [ist  Edition  1767]. 

Doctor  Johnson  brought  out  anonymously  in  1743  (2d  ed.), 
"An  Introduction  to  the  Study  of  Philosophy,  exhibiting  a 
general  view  of  all  the  arts  and  sciences."  I  find  in  it  a 
mellifluous  definition  of  poetry,  thus: 

"Poetry  is  a  polite,  lively  and  beautiful  description  of  either 
persons,  thing  or  facts,  whether  real  or  imaginary,  with  an 
elevation  and  dignity  of  thought,  and  a  kind  of  enthusiasm  of 
the  soul,  attended  with  the  advantages  of  numbers  and  har- 
mony and  every  kind  of  ornament,  that  language  is  capable 
of;  by  means  of  which,  it  brightens  and  enlivens  the  imagina- 
tion, raises  and  enkindles  the  whole  soul,  while  it  fills  it  with 
the  most  profitable  instruction,  attended  with  the  most  ex- 
quisite pleasure  and  delight." 

In  1746  Doctor  Johnson  published  anonymously  "Ethices 
Elementa,  or  the  First  Principles  of  Moral  Philosophy,"  dedi- 
cated to  Bishop  Berkeley  and  printed  by  Benjamin  Franklin. 
I  take  from  it  the  following  quiz : 

"  Let  therefore,  every  one,  in  order  to  the  right  knowledge 
of  himself  and  his  duty  and  happiness,  thus  seriously  reflect 
and  inquire  concerning  himself:  I.  What  am  I?  II.  How 
came  I  to  be  what  I  am  ?  III.  For  what  end  was  I  made  and 
have  my  being?  IV.  What  ought  I  immediately  to  do  and 
be  in  order  to  answer  the  end  of  my  being?  V.  Whether  I 
am  what  I  ought  to  be?  If  not,  VI.  what  ought  I  to  do  as  a 
means  in  order  to  be  and  do  what  I  ought  and  in  order  finally 
to  answer  the  end  of  my  Being? " 

*  A  son  of  Dr.  Johnson  was  afterward  president  of  this  college  (1791-1800),  and  still  later 
Dr.  William  Harris,  a  descendant  from  Rev.  Henry  Whitfield,  held  the  presidency  for  eighteen 
years,  (1811-1829). 


123 

These  were  the  days  when  it  is  said  every  ambitious  clergy- 
man in  New  England  of  a  literary  turn  wrote  a  catechism, 
until  there  were  some  three  hundred  of  them  extant. 

The  full  mention  of  Johnson's  works  would  make  a  biblio- 
graphy of  them.  He  was  life  through  'a  painful  student'  and 
a  writer  so  prolific,  we  may  say  of  him  what  George  III  said 
to  his  English  namesake,  "that  he  had  written  enough,  if  he 
had  not  written  so  well." 

Rev.  Thomas  Ruggles  used  to  say,  a  little  tartly,  from  con- 
troversial reasons,  "  that  Dr.  Johnson  was  always  of  the  opin- 
ion of  the  last][book  he  read";  by  which  it  would  seem  that 
his  temper  was  rather  sympathetic  than  disputative ;  in  con- 
versation he  was  very  social,  instructive,  agreeable ;  much  of 
the  gentleman,  according  to  the  diary  of  Doctor  Stiles. 
Bishop  Berkeley,  his  friend  and  correspondent  pronounced 
him  "one  of  the  finest  wits  in  America."  He  corresponded 
with  Linnaeus,  also  with  his  great  protagonist,  the  king  of 
English  letters,  Boswells  Johnson,  alive.  [Born  Guilford, 
October  14,  1696,  Yale  College  1714,  deceased  January  6, 
1772]. 

Artillery  seems  to  have  been  an  early  military  arm  of  Guil- 
ford and  a  general  must  once  have  been  hid  here  in  a  parson, 
as  appears  from  a  sermon,  delivered  by  Rev.  Thomas  Rug- 
gles, Junior,  to  an  artillery  company  at  Guilford,  May  25, 
1736,  upon  "The  Usefulness  and  Expedience  of  Souldiers 
as  discovered  by  Reason  and  Experience  and  countenanced 
and  supported  by  the  Gospel."  [Printed  and  sold  by  T. 
Green,  N.  London,  1737]. 

I  quote  from  it :  "  It  is  not  enough  that  they  understand 
the  Exercise  of  the  Gun  or  Spear  or  other  Military  Instru- 
ment :  to  brandish  the  Sword  and  conduct  themselves  grace- 
fully in  every  part  of  exercise.  'Tis  not  eno'  that  they  un- 
derstand the  words  of  Command  and  know  how  to  March 
regularly;  keep  their  Ranks  and  Files.  But  they  should 
Obey  the  Commands  of  their  Officers  chearfully  and  under- 
stand the  several  Beats  of  the  Drum,  that  great  warlike 
Instrument;  they  should  learn  the  reviving  and  animating 
sound  of  the  shrill  Trumpet,  that  noble  and  reviving  sound; 


124 

the  Trumpet,  that  great  Resemblance  of  the  Alarum  to  the 
final  Judgment.  They  should  also  learn  how  to  Charge  their 
enemies  successfully,  how  to  Besiege  our  enemies,  to  Batter 
down  or  Scale  their  walls,  Break  their  Ramparts  and  force 
them  to  Surrender.  *  *  *  *  Besides,  I  can't  but  think 
it  part  of  the  Business  of  Souldiers  to  understand  the  ways 
of  Fighting  by  Sea.  *  *  Boarding  their  Enemies  and 

Mastering  their  Opposers,  together  with  heaving  of  Bombs, 
those  Terrible  Instruments  of  Destruction,  and  all  other  parts 
of  that  way  of  warring."  So  the  good  man  heaves  his  bombs, 
words  luckily,  though  "horribly  stuffed  with  epithets  of  war." 

Mr.  Ruggles  published  several  sermons,  and  left  the  manu- 
script history  of  Guilford  (to  1769)  which  has  since  been 
variously  printed.  [He  was  born  in  Guilford,  Nov.  27,  1704, 
Yale  College  1723,  and  Fellow  of  Yale,  and  died  Nov.  19, 
1770]. 

Reverend  Jonathan  Todd,  pastor  of  the  Second  Church, 
East  Guilford  [born  New  Haven,  March  20,  1713,  Yale  Col- 
lege 1732,  deceased  February  24,  1791,]  published  an  elec- 
tion sermon  of  May  11,  1749),  upon  "Civil  Rulers,  the  Min- 
isters of  God  for  good  to  men;  or  the  divine  original  and 
authority  of  civil  government  asserted;"  also  two  funeral  dis- 
courses on  the  death  of  Rev.  Thomas  Ruggles,  junior,  deliv- 
ered in  the  First  Society  on  the  Sabbath  after  his  decease, 
Nov.  19,  1770. 

The  Baldwin  family  of  North  Guilford  has  done  literary 
work  above  the  common  grade.  Thus  Abraham  Baldwin, 
Senator  from  Georgia,  whither  he  had  removed,  wrote  the 
charter  of  the  University  of  Georgia,  of  which  he  was  presi- 
dent; and  as  member  of  the  Convention  [it  is  said]  prepared 
the  draft  of  the  National  Constitution  of  1787. 

"  His  memory  needs  no  marble: 

His  country  is  his  monument, 

Her  constitution  his  greatest  work." 

[Born  November,  6  1754,  Yale  College  1772,  he  died  March 
4.  1807.] 

A  sister,  Ruth  Baldwin  [1756],  was  wife  of  Joel  Barlow,  the 
author  and  publicist;  of  whom  it  is  said  "  she  was  three 


125 

months  learning  to  be  graceful,"  so  as  to  be  presented  at  the 
French  Napoleonic  Court,  to  which  Mr.  Barlow  was  minis- 
ter. But  this  is  rather  a  playful  North  Guilford  thrust  at  the 
scrupulosity  of  French  manners.  I  had  hoped  to  find,  in  the 
absence  of  literary  remains  by  Madame  Barlow,  that  she  was 
the  author  of  the  hasty  pudding,  that  was  the  avowed  motive 
of  the  pudding-poem  by  Mr.  Barlow.  But  the  pudding  was 
made  by  the  pretty  maid — some  Nanette  of  a  Savoyard  inn. 

About  these  days  (1785),  with  an  abandon  and  let-go  that 
is  unlike  her,  Guilford  seems  to  have  fallen  into  some  fit  of 
frivolity.  Accordingly,  Elijah  Norton,  a  man  raised  up  for 
the  occasion,  issued  a  bull  against  fools,  entitled  "  Fools 
in  Their  Folly"  (published  by  Collier  &  Copp,  at  Litchfield, 
1785).  This  appears  to  be  rather  a  buncombe  sermon, 
plainly  spoken  or  published  to  Litchfield,  but  covertly 
addressed  to  Guilford,  against  "  pleasures,  sports  and  plays," 
against  "  laughter  and  mirth,"  against  "  evening  street  halloo- 
ing," and  other  effervescening  of  animal  spirits. 

Colonel  Rufus  Norton  (born  North  Branford,  August  9, 
1756;  deceased  1812),  a  soldier  of  the  Revolution  and  a 
teacher  of  some  note  here,  was  a  man  of  deep  religious  feel- 
ing, which  expressed  itself  freely  in  verse.  He  left  a  volume 
of  unpublished  poems  of  graceful  expression,  consisting 
mainly  of  hymns,  divine  songs,  reflections,  lamentations,  com- 
plaints and  prayers.  These  are  severely  introspective  and 
gloomy  and  full  of  religious  melancholy,  which  we  should 
attribute  reproachfully  to  the  times  if  we  did  not  see  in  our 
own  day  disease  of  the  emotions  diligently  cultivated  by 
our  own  modes  of  thought. 

I  quote  from  a  "divine  song  ": 

"  While  crowds  of  blind  mortals  this  world  are  pursuing 

And  anxiously  toiling  to  make  themselves  great, 
I  see  them,  with  sorrow,  descending  to  ruin, 
And  equally  dread  their  example  and  fate. 

This  world  is  naught  else  than  a  splendid  delusion, 
A  scene  of  vexation,  of  pain  and  confusion; 
Affording  no  real  delight  in  conclusion, 
So  hapless  is  man  in  his  temporal  state." 


126 

In  her  time  in  England  (1723),  Mary  Wortley  Montague 
declares  "  making  verses  is  almost  as  common  as  taking 
snuff,  and  you  know  one  cannot  refuse  reading  and  taking  a 
pinch."  In  New  England  it  is  said  to  have  become  much 
more  common,  since  there  were  some  who  did  not  take  snuff. 
Much  of  this  common-as-snuff  writing  found  its  way,  very 
properly,  into  the  graveyards,  where  not  so  properly  "  our  an- 
cestors seem  to  have  reserved  their  witticisms  principally 
for  tombstones  and  funerals."  This  style  of  literature  has 
been  more  quaintly  and  quietly  developed  in  North  Guilford, 
from  whose  epitaphs  of  the  eighteenth  century  I  quote : 

1  Passengers,  survey  our  Age, 
Engrav'd  upon  this  mold'ring  page 

Vew  what  is  Exchang'd  away 

For  blooming  Youth,  these  beds  of  cla*. 

2  Here  lies  a.  friend  who  did  intend 

This  zion  up  to  Rear 
But  cruel  Death  did  stop  his  breath 
&  would  no  longer  spare. 

3  He  like  a  flower  is  cut  down, 

Death  nipt  him  in  his  prime; 
That  we  mite  se  the  vanity 

And  shortness  of  our  time. 
Our  youthful  age  to  be  compar'd 

Unto  a  flower  in  June. 
In  the  morning  it  shines  fresh  and  fair 

And's  dead  before  'tis  noon. 

4  Under  this  Stone  lies  a  dear  one, 

Who  was  a  pleasent  flower, 
Whose  Dust  God  keeps,  whilst  that  she  sleeps 

Untill  ye  Rifein'd  hour. 
Then  will  our  Lord  with  Sov'n  word 

His  own  Dear  Children  Raise; 
Teach  them  high  to  Glorify 

With  Songs  of  Endless  Praise. 

Reverend  Doctor  John  Eliot  of  East  Guilford,  grandson  of 
the  "  worshipful "  Jared,  (born  Killingworth  August  24, 
1768;  Yale  College  1786,  and  Fellow  of  Yale;  deceased 
December  17,  1824),  published  numerous  discourses,  among 


127 

them  an  election  sermon,  delivered  before  the  Governor  and 
the  Honorable  Legislature  May  10,  1810,  on  "The  Gracious 
Presence  of  God,  the  Highest  Felicity  and  Security  of  Any 
People."  This  was  a  tall,  thin  and  slender  man,  his  legs 
encased  in  black  stockings  and  small  clothes  and  his  head 
carried  in  abroad-brimmed  hat.  He  was  polite  and  scholarly, 
shrewd  and  wise. 

Reverend  Aaron  Button  (native  of  Watertown,  Conn.,  May 
21,  1780;  Yale  College  1803,  and  Fellow  of  Yale;  deceased 
June,  1849  >)>  published  a  sermon,  delivered  before  the  Con- 
necticut Society  for  the  Promotion  of  Good  Morals,  October 
18,  1815.  He  maintains  the  wisdom  of  executing  existing 
laws  and  declares  "  it  is  easier  to  subdue  sprouts  than  to  root 
up  sturdy  oaks."  He  himself  was  a  sturdy  oak,  whose  roots 
ran  deep  into  our  Guilford  earth  and  branched  upward  into  a 
noble  family  tree. 

Reverend  Doctor  David  Dudley  Field  (born  in  East  Guil- 
ford, 1781  ;  Yale  College,  1802  ;  and  deceased  1867,)  published 
several  books  of  local  htetory;  a  statistical  account  of  Middle- 
sex county,  1819;  a  history  of  Middletown  and  of  Berkshire 
county,  and  of  Pittsfield,  Mass.,  with  the  Brainerd  genealogy 
and  sermons. 

I  quote  from  his  notes  on  Rev.  Henry  Whitfield's  church, 
dated  Ockley,  England,  Sept.  3,  1848: 

"  I  attended  church,  morning  and  evening,  at  Ockley.  It 
was  affecting  to  me  to  attend  church  there,  because  the  prin- 
cipal settler  and  patron  of  my  native  town,  Guilford,  preached 
the  gospel  there  more  than  two  centuries  ago;  because  from 
that  parish  and  vicinity  about  forty  colonists,  followed  him 
into  the  American  wilderness  from  attachment  to  his  holy 
and  faithful  ministry,  and  because  from  his  disinterested 
public  spirit,  his  pious  self-denying  zeal  sacrifices,  instruction 
and  example,  great  privileges  and  blessings  have  come  to  the 
people  of  Guilford.  The  church  is  strong,  built  with  stone 
and  consists  of  a  nave  and  chancel.  The  ten  commandments 
are  over  the  communion  table,  which  is  neatly  ruled  in." 

John  P.  Foote  (a  native  of  Guilford,  born  June  26,  1783; 
deceased  1867),  wrote  the  biography  of  his  honored  brother, 
Samuel  E.  Foote  (Cincinnati,  1860),  and  a  history  of  the 


128 

schools  of  Cincinnati,  Ohio,  (1855).  The  biography  has  much 
suggestiveness  of  manly  character  and  is  exceptionally  robust 
reading.  The  History  of  the  Schools  of  Cincinnati,  a  neat 
illustrated  octavo,  tells  the  story  of  one  of  the  noblest  efforts 
for  higher  education  made  in  our  land.  The  book  is  a  treasure 
of  practical  ideas  with  discussions  on  matters  permanently 
related  to  education. 

The  appearance  of  Fitz-Greene  Halleck  in  1790  marks  an 
era  in  our  history  of  letters;  when  out  of  the  restful  serenity 
of  village  life,  the  speechful  power  of  hill  and  plain,  the 
waving  elms  and  shadowy  maples,  the  heapy  mounds  on 
Guilford  Green  with  the  roar  and  dash  of  the  sea  upon  the 
dull  and  scraggy  land,  there  rose  up  this  figure  of  the  poet, 
who  sang  so  well  and  tunefully,  that  all  the  nation  listened. 

What  was  there  here  in  1805-10  to  turn  a  merchant's  clerk 
into  a  poet  ?  There  are  some  indications  of  a  certain  cul- 
mination at  that  time  of  excellences  of  character  and  gifts  of 
spirit  and  mind  that  were  a  factor  in  the  birth  and  breeding 
of  the  poet.  Of  these,  there  remain  only  Sarah's*  eyes  and 
her  spirited  wit,  that  sparkles  still  charmingly  to-day.  Then, 
verses  of  social  gallantry,  verses  further,  indicative  of  a  new 
and  finer  fancy,  were  written,  stimulated  by  the  spirited 
activity  of  the  new  century.  Under  the  more  impelling  in- 
fluence and  larger  life  of  the  metropolis,  Halleck  pursued  his 
career,  until  he  had  secured  a  permanent  place  among  the 
poets  of  our  first  national  era.  We  ourselves  have  seen  him 
in  his  declining  years,  when  the  gaiety  and  fire  of  youth  were 
mellowed  in  the  serene  benignity  of  age.  We  have  heard 
his  voice  with  its  cultured  cadence  and  impressive  emphasis. 
We  have  been  charmed  by  his  conversational  ease  and  full- 
ness, and  have  listened  to  his  reminiscences  of  men  and 
things  belonging  like  himself  to  an  older  social  world  that 
was  passing  away.  We  see  still  the  surtouted,  pliant  figure 
of  this  gifted  man,  moving  with  gentle  bearing  through  our 
streets,  giving  us  the  cue  of  courtesy  while  lifting  his  hat 
with  kindly  grace  to  all;  so  he  has  left  an  impression  of 
humanity  that  has  endeared  the  poet  and  the  man  to  our 
memory. 

*Mrs.  Sarah  Redfield  Todd. 


129 

George  Hill  (born  in  Guilford,  Jan.  29,  1796;  Yale  College, 
1816;  deceased  Dec.  15,  1871,)  is  well  remembered;  a  man  of 
light  figure  and  polite  bearing,  who  looks  out  shyly  as  he 
passes  by,  dark-eyed  and  gentle.  He  was  a  poet  of  much 
natural  grace  and  elegance.  His  volume  of  short  poems, 
published  by  D.  Appleton  &  Co.,  passed  its  third  edition  in 
1871.  These  are  classical  and  finished  in  form,  and  to  some 
extent,  autobiographical.  Many,  and  those  in  his  best  vein, 
have  a  strain  of  gentle  sadness,  that  requires  in  the  reader  a 
special  sympathy  of  understanding,  not  always  at  the  reader's 
command.  Classic  lands,  religious  devotion  and  nature  are 
the  general  motives  of  his  fancy,  treated  with  refined  and 
chastened  spirit.  "  The  Ruins  of  Athens,"  "  Love  of  Spiritual 
Beauty,"  "yEgean  Vespers"  and  the  "Maiden's  Song  to  the 
Violets"  have  special  merit.  The  longer  poem,  "Idlings 
with  Nature,"  shows  nicety  of  observation  and  has  marked 
excellence,  much  local  reminiscence  and  scenic  description, 
graceful  pictures  of  our  own  scenery,  rock,  stream  and  wood, 
and  their  shy  populace. 

I  quote  a  single  short  poem,  "  The  Fall  of  the  Oak,"  an 
autumn  scene: 

"  A  glorious  tree  is  the  oak  ! 
He  has  stood  for  a  thousand  years, 
Has  stood  and  frowned 
On  the  woods  around 
Like  a  king  among  his  peers. 
As  round  their  king  they  stand,  so  now, 

As  the  flowers  their  pale  leaves  fold, 

The  tall  trees  around  him  stand,  arrayed 

In  their  leaves  of  purple  and  gold. 

The  autumn  sun  looks  kindly  down, 
But  the  frost  is  on  the  lea, 

And  sprinkles  the  horn 

Of  the  owl  at  morn, 
As  she  hies  to  the  old  oak  tree. 

Not  a  leaf  is  stirred, 

Not  a  sound  is  heard, 
Save  the  thump  of  the  thresher's  flail, 

The  low  winds  sigh 

Or  the  distant  cry 
Of  the  hound  on  the  fox's  trail. 


130 

By  wild  thorn-brake  and  brook-marge  green, 
Winding  his  way,  the  woodman's  seen; 

Till  lost  in  the  dewy  gloom 
That  shrouds  the  hill, 
Where  few  and  chill 

The  struggling  sunbeams  come; 
Where  the  last  flower  scents  the  frosty  air; 

And  hark  !  o'er  hight  and  hollow, 
As  the  partridge  whirrs  from  his  leafy  lair, 

His  strokes,  the  echoes  follow. 

Like  a  ship  at  sea, 
Rocks  the  old  oak  tree. 

Through  the  folds  of  his  gorgeous  vest, 
You  may  see  him  shake 
And  the  night  owl  break 

With  a  hoot  from  his  leafy  crest. 

She  will  come,  but  to  find  him  gone  from  where 
He  stood  at  the  glimpse  of  day; 

Like  a  cloud  'that  peals,  as  it  melts  in  air, 
He  has  passed,  with  a  crash,  away  ! 

Though  the  spring  in  green,  and  the  frost  in  gold 
No  more  his  limbs  attire, 

The  wild  sea  wave 

He  shall  mount  and  brave 
The  blast  and  the  battle-fire; 
Shall  spread  his  white  wings  to  the  wind 
And  thunder  on  the  deep, 

As  he  thundered  ere 

His  bow  was  bare, 
On  the  high  and  stormy  steep." 

Reverend  Abraham  Chittenden  Baldwin,  a  man  of  excellent 
Baldwin  parts,  (born  North  Guilford,  April  26,  1804  ;  Bowdoin 
College,  1827  ;  deceased  July,  1887  ;)  published  a  number  of 
sermons  and  sketches  as  of  Joel  Barlow  ;  also  a  prize  essay, 
entitled  "  Letters  to  a  Christian  Slaveholder"  (Boston,  1857). 

Ralph  Dunning  Smyth  was  a  native  of  Southbury,  Conn., 
(born  October  28,  1804;  Yale  College,  1827;  deceased  Septem- 
ber 11,  1874).  The  writings  of  Mr.  Smyth  especially  appeal 
to  us,  for  he,  beyond  all  others,  has  preserved  our  past  and 
done  a  work,  let  us  confess,  which  only  those  who  have  mel- 
lowed, or  are  mellowing,  with  years  can  justly  value  ;  a  work 
that  belongs  to  the  humanities  of  letters,  though  it  brings  no 


noisy  and  moneyed  fame.  His  genealogy  of  Guilford  families 
and  History  of  Guilford,  this  published  from  his  manuscripts, 
with  additions,  in  1877;  his  early  record  of  Yale  College,  down 
to  1767,  which  was  the  foundation  of  Professor  F.  B.  Dexter's 
more  extended  annals  ;  these,  left  in  beautiful  manuscript 
form,  represent,  in  part,  his  literary  labors.  Mr.  Smyth  main- 
tained correspondence  and  acquaintance  with  native  and  for- 
eign antiquaries  and  scholars,  among  whom  he  was  a  well 
known  authority. 

There  are  always  touches  of  pathos  in  early  references  to 
the  first  settlers,  as  in  this  passage,  which  I  quote  from  Mr. 
Smyth's  record  of  Rev.  Henry  Whitfield  : 

"Various  and  contradictory  indeed  were  the  reports  which 
came  back  from  those  who  had  hitherto  ventured  their  lives 
and  fortunes  in  that  distant  land.  Many  accounts  from  New 
England  were  painful  and  dreary,  but  others  were  more  satis- 
factory and  hopeful.  They  spoke,  indeed,  of  present  priva- 
tion, of  bitter  suffering  and  frequent  deaths,  before  which 
many  of  the  nobler  and  gentler  spirits  were  passing  away. 
Still,  they  were  prophetic  of  a  better  future  and  promised 
eventually  liberty  and  freedom  to  worship  God  both  for  them- 
selves and  their  posterity  in  the  land  of  their  exile." 

Full  portraits,  even  pen  pictures,  of  our  Guilford  and  Mad- 
ison writers  would  present  some  notable  figures. 

Thus,  Mr.  Smyth  was  a  man  of  distinguished  mien,  with  a 
certain  majesty  of  form  and  feature  and  that  full  cast  of  coun- 
tenance which  we  observe  in  the  marked  men  of  an  era,  and 
which  we  see,  wherever  the  unusual  exigencies  of  life,  gener- 
ation after  generation,  have  forced  their  way  into  the  physical 
and  facial  expression.  He  was  of  judicial  and  scholarly  aspect, 
and  kindly,  attentive  manner,  with  voice  expressive,  resonant 
and  toneful;  his  tall  form,  slightly  inclined  and  sometimes 
wrapt  in  an  air  of  thoughtful  abstraction,  he  moved  briskly 
across  the  Guilford  green,  a  strong,  familiar  figure  here  for 
nearly  fifty  years. 

Charles  Wyllys  Elliott  (Guilford,  May  27,  1817;  deceased 
August  23,  1883  ;)  published,  through  Charles  Scribner  & 
Company,  his  most  valuable  work  in  two  volumes :  The 


132 

History  of  New  England  from  A.  D.  986  to  1776.  This  was 
also  brought  out  by  Triibner  and  Co.,  London.  The  avowed 
object  is  "  to  trace  the  growth  of  ideas  and  principles  in  the 
development  of  man  in  New  England."  The  book  is  rather 
a  curiosity-shop  of  history  and  illustrates  with  painful  fidelity 
all  that  is  monstrous  and  peculiar  in  the  earlier  annals  of  the 
colonies.  Let  us  not  think  these  things  formed  the  main  cur- 
rent and  business  of  New  England  life,  though  they  rose  like 
froth  and  scum  upon  its  troubled  surface.  The  common  im- 
moralities may  be  charged  off-hand  to  the  ignorant  and 
vicious,  in  days  of  fondness  for  magnifying  iotas  of  evil  ;  while 
the  Quaker  persecutions,  the  fussy  contentions  of  faith,  the 
slaveries  and  the  witchcrafts,  form  decidedly  the  higher 
graded  criminal  record  of  the  professedly  most  virtuous, 
devout  and  intelligent.  In  1876  Mr.  Elliott  published, 
through  James  R.  Osgood  &  Company,  Boston,  the  Book  of 
American  Interiors  ;  a  broad  folio  with  illustrations  and  de- 
signs of  luxurious  dining  halls,  well-booked  libraries  and  bric- 
a'-brac-ed  studios  in  various  parts  of  the  country.  In  1878  D. 
Appleton  &  Company  brought  out  his  last  work  on  Pottery 
and  Porcelain  ;  a  handsome  octavo,  richly  illustrated  and  his- 
torical. 

The  preface  suggests  a  differentiation,  that  belongs  to  rather 
an  advanced  condition,  not  merely  of  means  but  of  personal 
culture  and  enrichment,  that  would  be  of  infinite  service  to 
the  retired  merchant,  or  business  man,  provided  he  has  not 
neglected  his  education  nor  spent  his  enthusiasm  ;  it  declares: 

"  I  would  like  to  remind  the  reader  that  there  are  a  few, 
who  have  money  enough  for  all  reasonable  wants  and  who  do 
not  care  to  waste  time  and  life  in  getting  more  money,  for 
which  they  have  no  special  uses.  These  persons  find  a  peren- 
nial occupation  in  the  study,  the  comparison,  the  purchasing, 
the  collecting  cf  all  that,  which  will  illustrate  their  subject  of 
study.  *  *  *  I  hold  that  whatever  makes  home  inter- 

esting, beautiful  or  useful,  is,  or  should  be,  interesting,  beau- 
tiful or  useful  to  all  the  world.  We  may  well  ask,  when  we 
go  to  a  house,  "  What  have  they  there  to  tell  us ;  what  to 
show  us  ?  What  have  they  collected  to  interest,  to  please,  to 


instruct?"  He  then  takes  up  man,  as  "  the  only  cooking  ani- 
mal," and  traces  his  history  by  the  way  of  pottery  and  porce- 
lain from  the  earliest  to  the  present  times.  He  tells  for  a 
quaint  bit  that  "a  belief  still  exists  in  Silesia,  that  there  is  a 
mountain,  out  of  which,  cups  and  jugs  spring  spontaneously, 
as  the  mushrooms  shoot  from  the  moist  soil  of  the  plain." 

Mr.  Elliott  published  also  "Cottages  and  Cottage  Life" 
(1848), "Glimpses  of  the  Supernatural"  (1852), "San  Domingo 
and  Its  Hero"  and  "  Remarkable  Characters  and  Places  in  the 
Holy  Land"  (1868).  He  was  a  member  of  the  New  York, 
Ohio  and  Connecticut  Historical  Societies,  lectured  before  the 
Lowell  Institute  of  Boston,  contributed  to  the  North  Amer- 
ican Revieiv,  and  wrote  much  on  the  recent  labor  movements 
of  the  day.  He  came  of  a  family  famous  for  personal  beauty. 
As  a  man  he  was  eccentric,  original,  genial,  humane,  compan- 
ionable, attractive  and  interesting. 

Reverend  Doctor  S.  W.  S.  Dutton  of  New  Haven  (born  in 
Guilford  March  14,  1814;  Yale  College,  1833;  deceased  Janu- 
ary 26,  1866;)  published  numerous  discourses,  historical  and 
biographical,  with  contributions  to  the  Congregational  Quar- 
terly and  the  New  Englander,  as  on  "  Slavery  and  the  Bible, 
Slavery  and  the  Church,  Slavery  and  Infidelity"  (the  New 
Englander,  September,  1857,);  also  a  sermon  on  "The  Fath- 
ers of  New  England,  Religion  Their  Ruling  Motive  in  Their 
Emigration."  His  writings  illustrate  the  humane  and  gen- 
erous temper  of  the  man. 

Reverend  Samuel  Fiske  of  Madison  (a  native  of  Shel- 
bourne,  Mass.,  July  23,  1828;  Amherst  College,  1848;)  died  in 
the  army  May  22,  1864.  Stories  of  this  man's  humor  used  to 
fly  over  to  us  in  ante-war  days  and  the  fair  man  himself,  blue 
eyes,  brown  hair  and  buoyant  form,  would  sometimes  on 
Sunday  morning  look  kindly  upon  us  from  the  high  pulpit  of 
the  First  Church,  and  his  voice  in  a  gently  persuasive 
meander  would  come  down  to  us.  We  remember  the  famous 
prayer,  that  did  duty  all  over  the  diocese — it  deserves  to  be 
rubriced  into  common  service — a  prayer  addressed  more  to 
earth  than  to  heaven : 


134 

"That  the  Lord  would  bless  the  congregation  assembled, 
and  that  portion  of  it  which  was  on  the  way  to  church,  and 
those  who  were  at  home  getting  ready  to  come,  and  that  in 
his  infinite  patience  he  would  grant  the  benediction  to  those 
who  reached  the  house  of  God  just  in  time  for  that." 

Mr.  Fiske  published,  under  his  pseudonym,  first  as  letters 
in  the  Springfield  Republican,  "Dunn  Browne  Abroad "  and 
"Dunn  Browne  in  the  Army"  (Nichols  &  Noyes,  Boston, 
1866).  These  are  graphic,  genial  and  bright  as  the  man 
himself. 

Richard  Edward  Smyth,  son  of  R.  D.  Smyth  (born  in 
Guilford,  Sept.  2,  1846;  Yale  College,  1866;  deceased  Dec.  18, 
1868 ;)  was  one  of  the  senior  editors  and  the  largest  poetical 
contributor  to  the  Yale  weekly  Courant,  which  somewhat 
revolutionized  the  style  of  Yale  publications.  Mr.  Smyth 
was  a  young  man  of  marked  originality  and  intellectual  tem- 
per, versatile  and  imaginative.  He  developed,  during  his 
short  life,  a  distinct  literary  ability,  that  was  not  without 
fruitage. 

I  quote  a  sonnet  of  his  from  the  Yale  Courant  of  1865  : 

"  Two  worlds  there  are:  the  one  this  world  we've  known; 
The  other  is  the  world,  that  ought  to  be, 
Which  never,  save  in  dream-thoughts,  can  we  see, 

Possessing  cold  reality  alone: 
Yet  oftentimes,  it  seems  as  if  the  stone 
Of  our  dead  lives  might  vivify  again, 
From  petrifaction,  budding  fresh  and  green, 
With  flecks  of  sunlight  on  their  verdure  thrown; 
The  world  might  yet  be  righted,  oft  it  seems, 
Nay  oft,  as  if  the  right  did  now  exist; 
And  sometimes  then,  a  tide  of  splendor  gleams, 
Lighting  our  hearts  with  glory  through  the  mist, 
By  strength-inspiring  breezes  are  we  kissed; 
In  dumb  delight,  we  stroll  by  gushing  streams; 
We  bask,  luxurious  in  bright,  wanning  beams; 
As  if  on  earth,  no  tigers  tore,  or  deadly  adders  hissed." 

Many  remoter  relations  in  letters  reflect  honor  upon  Guil- 
ford and  Madison.  If  it  were  not  for  these  "  leetle  yellow 
spots,"  as  DeTocqueville  called  Connecticut,  there  might 
have  been  no  "  Uncle  Tom's  Cabin,"  no  Atlantic  cable  liter- 


135 

ature,  no  new  Yale  treasure  house  of  literature,  and  possibly 
no  National  Institution  for  Deaf  and  Dumb  enlightenment  in 
letters.  These  notable  achievements,  at  all  events,  are  closely 
linked  with  the  names  of  Roxana  Foote  Beecher,  Sophia 
Fowler-Gallaudet,  David  Dudley  Field,  and  Simeon  Baldwin 
Chittenden. 

Such,  at  a  glance,  are  Guilford  and  Madison  in  literature. 
Reviewing  the  double  field  of  it,  we  find  a  few  of  our  writers 
enter  into  our  national  history  of  literature;  and  Whitfield 
and  Higginson,  Jared  Eliot  and  Johnson,  Halleck,  Hill  and 
Charles  Wyllys  Elliott,  though  they  may  be  "  never  thumbed 
and  greased  by  students,"  may  remain  permanent  representa- 
tives of  their  times.  However  variously  this  literature,  quo- 
table or  unquotable,  may  appeal  to  us  to-day,  these  are  our 
sacred  writings  and  scriptures;  the  lettered  messages  from 
the  past  to  us  of  our  own  ancient  scribes  and  studie-men. 
We  cannot  stay  to  note  the  circumstantial  setting  with  the 
sympathetic  influences  from  time  to  time,  that  have  deter- 
mined the  subjects  and  modes  of  thought  with  the  wordy 
features  and  manners  of  expression  of  our  writers  of  the  past. 
We  recognize  that  literature  is  the  last  product  of  our  soil; 
that  many  a  bushel  and  pound  of  things  must  be  picked  up 
and  bartered  away  before  a  line  can  be  either  written  or 
printed. 

We  may  in  general  regard  all  literatures  as  so  many 
changing  fashions  of  prevailing  forms  of  thought,  radiating 
from  the  more  powerful  centers  of  influence  and  grouped 
around  various  hypotheses,  the  real  or  made  ground  of  pro- 
visional, empyrical  systems. 

Even  since  Guilford  and  Madison  were  settled,  the  condi- 
tions of  letters  have  changed.  Thanks  to  science  and  new 
motors  of  motion,  the  world  has  come  into  a  more  general 
commonwealth  ;  and  the  influence  of  other  peoples  and  places 
is  about  to  give  a  fuller  perspective  and  a  less  sectional  out- 
look upon  the  problems  of  human  inquiry.  We  move  in  ideas 
and  tendencies  along  confluent  streams  from  unnumbered 
historic  and  prehistoric  sources.  The  past  is  so  much  a  part 
of  the  present,  is  so  interlinked  and  woven  with  it,  that  his- 


136 

torians  of  primitive  civilizations  tell  us  the  modes  of  thought 
and  the  assumptions  of  primeval  savages  are  not  yet  cast  out 
from  our  refined  philosophies.  At  present,  and  for  a  little. 
Teutons  and  Saxon-English  in  our  politics  and  ethics  ;  then 
for  a  little  Jewish  Christians  in  our  speculative  philosophy  of 
life,  we  may  regard  these  to-oay  as  passing  phases  of  devel- 
opment out  of  which  we  shall  advance  into- the  broader  con- 
ditions of  a  larger  observation  and  experience.  A  just  separa- 
tion and  distinction  in  the  higher  departments  of  knowledge 
must  also  finally  release  us  from  many  confused  entanglements 
in  science,  morals  and  philosophy.  By  cultivating  a  more 
general  historic  sense  and  sympathy  and  by  discriminating 
the  sweetened  luxuries  from  the  substantial  necessities  of 
thought,  our  imagination  and  intelligence  may  be  ex- 
tended and  kept  open  for  new  growths  and  advancements. 
Present  upheavals  in  ideas  are  the  natural,  and  healthful 
methods,  by  which  the  inner  forces  of  human  activity  break 
through  the  thick  crust  and  incubus  of  inherited  philosophies 
with  their  insufficient  and  outgrown  routines.  After  the  toils 
of  research  and  discovery  come  the  periods  of  orderly  con- 
vention, conclusion  and  rest  ;  all  to  be  broken  up  anew  by 
further  invigorated  research  and  discovery.  This  is  the  order 
of  healthful  human  progress  ;  every  peaceful  period  of  trust 
and  repose,  followed  by  the  strife  and  storm  of  unsatisfied 
inquiry  ;  every  absolute  advance,  proving  the  final  relativity 
of  our  knowledge  and  thought. 

But  the  laws  of  letters  and  of  thought  will  remain  the  same 
and  development  will  still  have  its  schools,  grades  and  de- 
grees. There  will  rerpain  states  of  mind,  inferior  and  supe- 
rior; with  noble  and  ignoble  infirmities  and  intellectual 
atmospheres  with  alternate  calms  and  storms.  Nomenclature 
and  names,  under  conventional  order,  will  continue  to  serve 
the  lighter  exercises  of  popular  fancy,  and  men  will  be  marti- 
nets for  this  and  for  that  ;  feeling  will  pass  for  intelligence  ; 
self-interest  and  establishment  will  be  constant  and  powerful 
factors,  while  the  emotions,  like  wild  voltaic  forces,  will 
passionately  seize  upon  whatever  reflects  them  best,  or 
promises  them  most. 


137 

But  dominated,  as  it  should  be,  by  scientific  inquiry,  ex-- 
tended,  as  it  must  be,  by  human  sympathy  and  responsiveness 
of  condition,  man's  patient  intelligence  will  continue  to  ex- 
plore the  fields,  that  reach  worlds-wide  above  and  about  him. 
So  forever  will  stand  the  problem  of  adapting  human  instinct 
and  reason  with  its  idealized  longings  and  sore  sensibilities  to 
the  surroundings  of  a  world  so  full  of  terror  and  charm.  Fear 
of  the  sublimities,  that  lurk  harmless  around  us,  may  subside 
as  an  element  in  mental  action,  and  as  men  enter  upon  a  more 
expansive  condition  of  mind,  with  the  more  healthful  exercise 
of  the  imagination  in  legitimate  fields  of  fancy,  a  calmer  atti- 
tude may  come  in  place  of  the  present,  formulated  dread. 

The  undying  instincts  of  aspiration,  which  humanity  can 
no  more  lose  than  it  can  lose  the  breath  of  its  body,  not  lost 
but  turned  into  other  forms,  will  run  out  into  wider  channels. 

The  stability  and  constancy  of  affairs,  resting  as  always 
upon  the  broad  foundations  of  the  physical  basis,  destined 
through  future  enlargements  to  give  new  buoyancy  to  human 
life,  may  still  be  inspired  and  solaced  by  the  genial  fancies  of 
philosophy.  And  so  advancing  from  period  to  period,  with 
more  and  more  intelligent  wonder,  human  awe  will  not  cease 
to  turn  devoutly  to  that  "  infinite  obscurity,  in  which  our 
slender  thought  appears  for  an  instant,"  moving  like  a  gleam 
of  light  through  the  not  unfriendly  powers  that  enfold  us. 


THE  RECEPTION. 


In  order  to  give  the  desired  opportunity  for  the  former 
residents  and  their  descendants  to  meet  the  present  citizens 
of  Guilford,  the  Committee  of  Arrangements  decided  to  have 
an  informal  reception  on  Monday  evening,  and  appointed 
Messrs.  H.  W.  Spencer,  George  S.  Davis  and  F.  P.  Knowles 
as  a  committee  of  arrangements.  The  committee  were  very 
fortunate  in  having  the  large  and  commodious  Hubbard  house 
offered  for  the  purpose  by  the  occupants,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  John 
B.  Hubbard  and  Miss  Mary  Hubbard.  The  house  was  beau- 
tifully decorated  with  bunting  and  flags  and  the  front  illumi- 
nated with  festoons  of  Chinese  lanterns.  The  committee 
were  assisted  in  receiving  the  guests  by  Mrs.  Lydia  Coan, 
Miss  Kate  Hunt,  Miss  Anna  Stone,  Miss  Mary  Munson  and 
Miss  Alice  Skinner. 

The  first  three  ladies  were  dressed  in  the  costume  of  a  cen- 
tury back,  while  Miss  Munson  and  Miss  Skinner,  in  dresses 
of  the  present  day,  made  a  contrast  that  added  to  the  attract- 
iveness of  all.  Miss  Kate  Hunt,  as  Martha  Washington,  was 
especially  noticeable. 

The  genealogical  tree  of  the  Hubbard  family  tracing  the 
family  down  from  George  Hubbard,  a  beautifully  carved  chest, 
dated  1635,  a  fine  old  chair,  200  years  old,  and  a  large  collec- 
tion of  rare  coins  and  china,  were  on  exhibition  in  the  different 
rooms.  The  house  was  crowded  during  the  three  hours  of 
the  reception,  and  nearly  all  the  speakers  were  seen  there  as 
well  as  many  of  the  residents  of  Guilford  and  Madison. 

Mr.  Robert  Foote,  the  celebrated  violinist,  and  a  descendant 
of  Guilford  families,  gave  some  very  fine  music  during  the 
evening. 

Advantage  was  taken  of  the  presence  of  so  many  of  the 
former  scholars  of  the  Institute  to  hold  an  informal  reunion 


139 

in  the  parlors  of  the  North  Church.  There  was  a  large 
attendance.  Capt.  Charles  Griswold  was  called  to  the  chair, 
and  short  speeches,  giving  reminiscences  of  school  days  under 
Mr.  Mack  and  his  successors,  were  made  by  Rev.  E.  C.  Starr, 
K.  Elliot  Kimberly,  Miss  Susan  Ward,  Capt.  Griswold  and 
others. 

The  committee  on  decorations  had  arranged  for  a  line  of 
Chinese  lanterns  around  the  green,  but  the  high  wind  pre- 
vented lighting  them,  which  was  the  only  disappointment  in 
the  evening's  programme. 


THE  PARADE. 


The  parade  in  Guilford  on  Tuesday  morning,  Sept.  loth,  was  one  of  the 
most  interesting  events  of  the  Anniversary  Celebration.  The  long  pro- 
cession presented  many  vivid  pictures  of  the  brave  and  simple  lives  led  by 
our  forefathers  in  the  wilderness,  and  illustrated  the  quaint  customs  and 
methods  prevailing  in  the  early  days  of  the  settlement,  contrasting  them 
with  many  of  the  improvements  and  advances  made  through  the  progress 
of  two  hundred  and  fifty  years.  The  line,  when  completed,  was  of  great 
extent  and  variety,  a  part  of  it  being  the  contribution  of  Guilford's  sister 
town  of  Madison  (East  Guilford.) 

The  main  Guilford  division  was  under  the  direction  of  Capt.  Wm.  Lee, 
Chief  Marshal,  assisted  by  Mr.  Henry  Bullard. 

Directly  behind  the  marshals  rode  four  well-mounted  aides,  two  of  them 
being  young  ladies,  sitting  their  horses  gracefully,  and  presenting  an 
attractive  variation  of  the  usual  order.  The  aides  were: 

Albert  H.  Phelps,  Miss  Helen  Rossiter, 

Frank  Rossiter,  Miss  Alice  Dudley. 

These  aides  were  followed  by  an  amusing  escort  in  the  shape  of  a  small 
boy  mounted  upon  a  diminutive  donkey  in  gay  trappings. 

Foremost  in  the  Guilford  Procession  came  the  first  platoon  of  the  Guil- 
ford Battery  A,  C.  N.  G.,  commanded  by  Lieutenant  B.  S.  Honce. 

This  company  preceded  the  carriages  containing  invited  guests. 

Owing  to  the  early  hour  at  which  the  procession  was  to  start,  and  the 
fact  that  many  who  were  to  occupy  carriages  came  into  town  that  morning, 
some  difficulty  was  experienced  in  finding  the  intended  occupants  of  par- 
ticular carriages.  The  order  for  the  first  four,  as  arranged,  and  partially 
carried  into  effect,  was  as  follows: 

FIRST    CARRIAGE. 

His  Honor  Lieut.  Gov.  S.  E.  Mervvin,         Prof.  Samuel  Hart,  D.  D., 
Ellsworth  Eliot,  M.  D.,  Alvan  Talcott,  M.  D. 

SECOND    CARRIAGE. 

Senator  Joseph  R.  Hawley,  Col.  T.  W.  Higginson, 

Justice  Andrew  C.  Bradley,  Rev.  George  W.  Banks. 

THIRD    CARRIAGE. 

Senator  O.  M.  Platt,  Rev.  J.  E.  Todd,  D.  D., 

Prof.  W.  R.  Dudley,  Hon.  Henry  Barnard,  LL.  D. 


FOURTH    CARRIAGE. 

Hon.  N.  F.  Wilcox,  M.  C.,  Hon.  Lewis  R.  Steiner,  M.  D  , 

Mr.  Joel  Benton,  Rev.  J.  A.  Gallup. 

Other  speakers,  representatives  of  towns,  colleges,  and  historical  soci- 
eties, guests  especially  invited,  and  the  local  clergy  were  assigned  to  later 
carriages. 

Following  the  carriages  conveying  the  guests  and  speakers,  came  seventy 
of  the  Grand  Army  men  belonging  to  Parmelee  Post  No.  42.  They  were 
commanded  by  Charles  Griswold.  Directly  behind  the  Grand  Army 
organization  appeared,  upon  horseback,  an  Indian  chief  and  squaw  of 
wild  and  barbaric  aspect,  who  attracted  great  attention  along  the  line  of 
march.  The  former  giving  voice,  from  time  to  time,  to  blood-curdling  imi- 
tations of  the  historic  war-whoop,  more  suggestive,  perhaps,  of  the  recent 
attractions  of  the  "Wild  West,"  than  of  the  former  presence  of  the  red 
man  along  these  peaceful  shores.  This  highly  entertaining  chief  and 
squaw  were  represented  by  John  H.  Hotchkiss  and  Frank  E.  Beckley. 

Next  in  the  order  of  procession  came  the  Menuncatuck  Drum  Corps, 
discoursing  stirring  music,  and  followed  by  the  Washington  Engine  Co. 
No.  I,  Charles  B.  Norton,  foreman. 

These  men,  in  their  red  shirts,  drawing  the  famous  old  hand  engine,  were 
a  picturesque  addition  to  the  line.  After  them  came  CoU's  Band  of  Hart- 
ford, whose  martial  appearance  and  fine  music  was  a  most  pleasing  feature 
of  the  parade. 

Following  the  band  came  the  members  of  the  St.  Albans  Lodge  of 
Masons,  S.  W.  Landon,  master  ;  and  the  Menuncatuck  Lodge  of  Odd 
Fellows,  Albert  H.  Benton,  noble  grand.  These  organizations  were  suc- 
ceeded by  the  Eagle  Engine  Co.,  No.  2,  William  Hotchkiss,  foreman. 
This  company  is  composed  of  boys  between  the  ages  of  fifteen  and 
twenty.  They  also  .drew  a  hand  engine,  and  made  a  most  creditable  dis- 
play in  their  bright  and  appropriate  uniforms 

The  chief  charm  of  this  anniversary  parade  lay,  naturally,  in  the  repre- 
sentations of  the  life  and  manners  of  a  former  time  exhibited  on  the  vari- 
ous floats  sent  from  the  different  town  districts. 

The  first  of  these  was  contributed  by  Leetes  Island,  and  displayed  a 
well-executed  scene  from  Indian  life. 

Near  a  spreading  pine  tree  stood  a  large  and  ingeniously  constructed 
wigwam,  at  the  entrance  of  which  sat  a  dignified  old  Indian  chief  attended 
by  one  of  his  braves.  A  pretty  touch  of  romance  was  added  to  the  pic- 
ture by  the  gay  figure  of  the  chief's  bright-eyed  little  daughter  standing 
beneath  a  canopy  of  stretched  skins. 

The  occupants  of  this  float  were  as  follows  : 
William  H.  Norton,  R.  Wayne  Leete, 

Harry  Watrous,  Driver.  William  J.  Leete. 

This  effective  little  Ind.an  group  was  most  appropriately  succeeded  by 
the  large,  and  extremely  interesting  float,  upon  which  was  depicted  the 
original  purchase,  from  the  Indians,  of  the  territory  now  comprising  the 
town  of  Guilford.  .The  scene  here  presented  was  a  striking  one.  The  six 


142 

dignified,  and  picturesquely  atured  pioneers,  holding  treaty  with  the 
Indians,  represented  the  foremost  men  in  the  little  settlement,  headed  by 
the  Rev.  Henry  Whitfield.  An  attractive  addition  to  the  suggestive  scene 
was  the  quaint  group  of  Puritan  children  clad  in  their  straight  little  stuff 
gowns  and  prim  caps.  Several  of  these  strictly-reared  little  maidens  were 
seen  to  be  attentively  studying  their  Bibles,  casting,  however,  occasional 
demure  glances  at  the  by-standers  as  the  procession  passed  along. 
The  occupants  of  this  pioneer  float  were  : 

PURITANS. 

Walter  R.  Steiner,  Gertrude  R.  Steiner, 

Lloyd  Kitchel,  Bertha  R.  Steiner, 

George  Landon,  Meta  H.  Skinner, 

Thomas  Landon,  Emma  S.  Seward, 

George  E.  Skinner,  Amy  L.  Steiner, 
Edna  S.  Seward. 


Arthur  Lombard,  Hattie  Foote, 

Jessie  Loper,  Driver — S.  R.  Snow. 

Preserving  the  correct  historical  sequence,  the  following  float,  which  was 
contributed  by  the  Clapboard  Hill  District,  represented  one  of  the  earliest 
homes  built  by  the  first  settlers  upon  their  arrival,  to  serve  them  as  tempo- 
rary shelters  in  the  wilderness.  This  was  a  well-contrived  log  cabin;  within 
which  was  clustered  the  planter's  little  family,  and  as  many  of  his  personal 
goodp,  probably,  as  the  "Mayflower"  could  allow  to  one  householder. 
Behind  the  tiny  openings,  which  answered  for  windows  in  the  rudely  con- 
structed dwelling,  knelt  stalwart  planters,  leveling  their  primitive  muskets 
at  imaginary  foes,  reminding  the  spectator  most  forcibly  of  those  perilous 
times  when  the  forefathers  carried  their  guns  to  meeting,  and  lived  in  daily 
terror  of  their  lurking,  ever-watchful  enemy,  the  Indian.  The  persons  tak- 
ing part  in  this  historic  representation  were  : 

Walter  Griswold,  Frank  Barrett, 

Edward  Griswold,  Loper  Evarts, 

Frank  Griswold,  Mrs.  F.  Griswold, 

Leiws  Griswold,  Miss  Minnie  Griswold, 

Driver^Edgar  Parmelee. 

The  float  succeeding  the  early  log  cabin  exhibited  one  of  the  most  inter- 
esting representations  in  the  line.  The  scene  being  not  only  well  pre- 
sented, but  commemorative  of  a  romantic  and  authentic  event  in  the  early 
history  of  the  settlement.  This  was  the  first  wedding  in  the  famous  "old 
Stone  House,"  at  which  Sarah  Whitfield,  the  daughter  of  the  Rev.  Henry 
Whitfield,  was  united  to  John  Higginson,  the  ancestor  of  Col.  Thomas 
Wentworth  Higginson  of  Cambridge,  Mass.  This  pretty  scene  was  charm- 
ingly illustrated  by  the  blushing  bride  in  her  ancient  wedding  finery,  and 
the  correctly-attired,  decorous  young  Puritan  bridegroom.  The  bride's 


143 

father  was  the  officiating  minister,  clad  in  the  dignified  garb  peculiar  to  his 
office  in  those  early  days  of  clerical  importance.  Beyond  the  little  group 
of  gaily  dressed  wedding  guests,  lurked  a  watchful,  keen-eyed  Indian, 
adding  a  somewhat  uncanny  suggestion  to  the  happy  scene. 

Tradition  relates  of  this  primitive  wedding  feast  that  it  consisted  solely 
of  "pork  and  peas,  and  rye  bread,"  all  of  which  were  effectively  set  forth 
upon  the  prettily  decorated  platform. 

This  interesting  float  was  the  contribution  of  the  "Stone  House"  and  the 
ladies  and  gentlemen  taking  part  in  the  scene  were  as  follows  : 

Miss  Susan  B.  Chase,  Miss  Bertha  Palmer, 

Frank  P.  Knowles,  Albert  Brewer, 

Ernest  Fowler,  Walter  Goldsmith, 

Driver — Lewis  Fowler. 

The  old  Stone  House  farm   was  also  represented  in  the  line  by  a  deco- 
rated wagon  laden  with  the  flowers  and  fruits  of  the  season. 
Driver — F.  F.  Beebe. 

Following  these  contributions  from  the  Stone  House  came  two  ancient 
vehicles,  drawn  by  antiquated  steeds,  and  looking  as  if  they  and  their 
oddly-dressed  occupants  had  been  veritably  resurrected  from  the  past. 

The  first  of  these  conveyances  was  a  genuine  "  one  hoss  shay,"  aged  125 
years ;  it  was  occupied  by  a  dignified  and  important-looking  couple, 
elaborately  dressed  for  their  period,  and  representing  Governor  William 
Leete  and  wife. 

The  second  conveyance  was  of  a  somewhat  different  pattern  from  the 
foregoing,  being  swung  "  perilously  high  in  air,"  and  representing,  possi- 
bly, even  greater  antiquity.  In  it  rode  the  "  observed  of  all  observers," 
a  smiling,  blushing  bridal  pair,  with  their  small,  brass-studded  hair  trunk 
strapped  on  behind.  This  primitive  couple,  starting  upon  their  simple 
wedding  journey,  drew  forth  the  hearty  sympathy  and  admiration  of  the 
throng.  The  occupants  were  Henry  W.  Leete  and  wife. 

Guilford  Grange,  No.  8,  was  next  represented  by  a  finely  decorated  wagon 
laden  with  farm  products.  Its  occupants  were : 

Wilson  Hinsdale,  Edith  Banks, 

Nellie  Hubbard.  Mary  Phelps, 

Ruth  Lee,  Mrs.  John  Hubbard, 

May  Petrie,  Driver — John  B.  Hubbard. 

Still  another  amusing,  as  well  as  instructive,  feature  of  the  procession, 
was  the  float  occupied  by  Mrs.  Andrew  Fooie,  busily  making  tape  after  the 
primitive  fashion,  and  Mrs.  Leverett  Stone  deftly  spinning  at  a  small  flax 
wheel,  according  to  the  quaint  and  picturesque  custom  of  the  foremothers 
of  New  England. 

Following  these  representations  of  vanished  home  industries  came  a 
most  pretty  and  homelike  scene  representing  an  old-fashioned  quilting 
party.  Six  prim,  but  cheery  old  ladies,  in  caps  and  spectacles  and  severe- 


144 

looking  gowns,  sat  comfortably  up  to  the  quilting  frame,  nodding  pleas- 
antly at  one  another,  and  gossiping,  with  evident  relish,  as  they  thrust  their 
skillful  needles  in  and  out.  The  ladies  on  this  float  were  : 

Miss  Nellie  Snow,  Miss  H.  Bishop, 

Miss  Ida  Snow,  Miss  L.  Nettleton, 

Miss  Mamie  Bishop,  Miss  Etta  Bullard, 
Driver — Herbert  Jones. 

Mr.  William  Dowd,  Guilford's  veteran  "shoemaker,"  followed  the 
quilting  bee,  presiding  over  an  old-time  shoemaker's  shop,  whereon  shoes 
were  being  manufactured  according  to  the  most  approved  methods  of  "ye 
ancient  time." 

Mr.  Dowd  was  assisted  in  this  primitive  industiy  by  Robert  Munger, 
and  Robert  Kelsey.  This  shoemaker's  float  was  driven  by  Frank  Riche. 

From  North  Guilford  came  an  enterprising  couple  on  horseback,  the 
wife  riding  upon  a  pillion  behind  her  lord  and  master,  after  the  fashion  in 
which  our  foremothers  were  forced  to  go  to  "  mill  and  to  meeting"  or  re- 
main at  home.  This  spirited  dame  and  her  substantial  spouse,  were  clad 
in  garments  suitable  to  their  long  ride  through  the  almost  trackless  forest, 
and  were  greeted  with  much  enthusiasm  by  the  spectators.  The  lady  and 
gentleman  assuming  this  interesting  disguise  were  Mr.  P.  K.  H6adley  and 
Ilvena  Hoadley. 

Following  this  adventurous  pair  was  a  large  float  from  Leete's  Island 
carrying  a  company  of  early  settlers,  men  and  women,  clad  in  the  char- 
acteristic costumes  of  their  period.  They  were  : 

John  Rogers,  Abbie  L.  Leete, 

Annie  B.  Fowler,  Jennie  E.  Leete, 

Willie  Culver,  Park  Culver, 

Irving  P.  Leete,  Josie  Leete, 

Ulmer  Rogers,  Hattie  Rogers, 

Sarah  G.  Leete,  Nellie  Leete, 
Driver — John  Rogers. 

Plodding  slowly  after  the  procession  came  the  curious  figure  of  the 
"old  leather  man."  His  garments  of  leather,  rudely  pieced  together, 
were  successfully  copied  by  Mr.  Ellsworth  M.  Leete  of  Leete's  Island. 

With  this  old  individual  the  Guilford  division  of  the  parade  terminated. 
Then  followed  : 

THE  MADISON  PROCESSION. 


The  Madison  division  of  the  celebration  parade  was  made  up  of  detach- 
ments from  the  various  town  districts,  under  the  direction  of  Mr.  J.  Samuel 
Scranton,  Chief  Marshal,  assisted  by  Mr.  J.  Brannan,  and  Mr.  Payson 
Tucker.  When  at  East  River  the  final  additions  were  made  to  the  line,  the 
Madison  procession  stretched  for  more  than  a  mile  along  the  old  Boston 
turnpike  road. 

It  was  headed  by  the  Madison  Drum  Corps,  riding  in  a  wagon  draped 
with  the  stars  and  stripes.  Their  stirring  music  was  a  most  pleasing  feature 
<if  the  parade. 


Foremost  in  the  attractions  of  the  Madison  procession  was  the  finely-ap- 
pointed float  occupied  by  a  group  representing  the  original  purchase  from 
the  Indians,  by  the  planters  and  early  minister  of  ihe  territory  afterwards 
called  East  Guilford.  This  float  was  appropriately  decorated  with  spreading 
cedar  trees,  skins  of  animals,  and  Indian  trophies  ;  the  sides  of  the  plat- 
form being  draped  with  white  cotton,  upon  which  were  inscribed  certain 
amusing,  and  authentic,  details  of  the  bargain, — notably  the  price  paid  to 
Uncas  for  .the  tract  of  land  lying  between  East  River  and  Tuxis  Pond.  The 
Indians,  of  whom  there  were  seven,  were  gorgeously  attired  in  gay  beads 
and  blankets,  war-paint  and  feathers  ;  the  planters  appeared  in  the  quaint 
and  effctive  costumes  of  the  olden  time,  and  the  early  minister  in  the  dis- 
tinctive dress  of  his  period  and  profession  ;  all  uniting  to  form  a  most 
striking  and  suggestive  tableau.  The  gentlemen  personating  the  Indians 
were  : 

L.  Ives  Bushnell,  New  Hav'n,  Ct.,         Duncan  Puller,  Norfolk,  Va., 
Mr.  Walter  Crampton,  Mr.  Darwell  Conklin, 

Mr.  A    Miner,  Mr.  A.  Griswold, 

Mr.  Frank  Scranton. 

The  minister  was  represented  by  Mr.  F.  C.  Dowd  ;  the  planters,  by 
Mr.  W.  B.  Coe,  Mr.  Frederick  Coe, 

Mr.  Horace  Hunter. 

A  second  chief  feature  of  the  Madison  procession  was  the  amusing  rep- 
resentation of  an  old-time  Singing  School,  under  the  able  leadership  of  a 
former  teacher  of  the  village  singing  schools,  Mr.  Samuel  Hill.  This 
picturesque  company  of  youths  and  maidens,  clad  in  the^fashions  of  a  by- 
gone age,  occupied  a  large  platform  prettily  canopied  with  scarlet  and 
white  cloth,  and  beautifully  trimmed  with  golden-rod. 

As  the  procession  wound  along  the  Singing  School  greeted  the  by- 
standers, from  time  to  time,  with  the  familiar  tunes  of  "  Auld  Lang  Syne." 

The  ladies  and  gentlemen  participating  in  this  entertainment  were  : 

Mrs.  W.  B.  Coe,  Mrs.  E.  J.  Scranton, 

Mrs.  G.  N.  Coe,  Mrs.  F.  T.  Dowd, 

Miss  Lizzie  Scranton,  Miss  Etta  Bishop, 

Miss  Etta  Flowers,  Miss  Carrie  Crampton, 

Miss  Kittie  Pickett,  Mr.  E.  B.  Redfield, 

Mr.  Almon  Minor,  Mr.  B.  Crampton, 
Mr.  A.  H.  Samson. 

Thanks  are  also  due  Mr.  Wallace  Lewis  for  his  own  services  and  the 
use  of  his  horses  in  the  interest  of  the  Singing  School. 

(The  two  previous  floats  were  contributed  by  the  Boston  street  district, 
and  were  due  to  the  efforts,  chiefly,  of  Mr.  W.  B.  Coe,  Mr.  S.  A.  Scranton, 
and  Mr.  N.  T.  Bushnell). 

Not  least  in  the  attractions  of  the  procession  was  the  gaily-trimmed 
wagon  driven  by  Mr.  F.  T.  Dowd,  and  carrying  a  load  of  young  ladies, 
pupils  of  the  Hand  Academy  of  Madison.  They  constituted  Madison's 


146 


contribution  of  waitresses  for  the  celebration  dinner,  each  wearing,  as  a 
badge  of  service,  a  dainty  apron.  These  young  girls  were  armed  with 
boquets  of  brilliant  autumnal  flowers,  with  which  they  waved  laughing 
salutes  to  the  spectators  along  the  line  of  the  parade. 

At  East  River  a  prominent  addition  was  made  to  the  line  in  the  shape  of 
a  finely  decorated  float  exhibiting  a  display  of  the  school  furniture  manufac- 
tured by  George  Munger  &  Son,  of  East  River.  The  front  of  the  high 
canopy  bore  in  conspicuous  letters  the  former  Indian  name  of  East  River, 
"  Ruttawoo,"  while  on  a  blackboard  in  the  rear  appeared  the  words,  "East 
Guilford,  1639."  This  attractive  modern  school  was  occupied  by  a  merry 
company  of  children,  waving  flags,  and  was  driven  by  its  proprietor,  Mr. 
George  B.  Munger.  The  children  assisting  this  enterprise  were  : 

Alice  Munger,  Mabel  Moody, 

Myra  Chittenden,  Bertha  Wilcox, 

Grace  Hull,  Horace  Chittenden, 
Burton  Hull. 

The  Madison  procession  was  otherwise  enlivened  by  several  gay  compa- 
nies of  men,  women  and  children,  riding  in  fancifully  trimmed  hay  wagons, 
and  by  a  number  of  flag-bedecked  carts  laden  with  provisions  and  repre- 
sentative of  the  village  industries. 

In  this  long  line  were  to  be  seen  most  of  the  prominent  citizens  of  Madi- 
son and  East  River,  many  of  whose  carriages  were  appropriately  decorated 
in  honor  of  the  occasion. 

The  Madison  procession  assembled  in  the  Center  District  of  that  town 
promptly  at  8:30  A.  M.,  on  Tuesda}7,  arriving  in  the  outskirts  of  Guilford  at 
about  9:30.  • 

The  Guilford  procession  assembled  around  the  village  gieen  at  about  9 
o'clock  A.  M.  At  9:30  the  line  set  forth  to  meet  and  escort  into  the  town 
the  Madison  division,  which  lay  awaiting  them  on  the  main  road  in  the  out- 
skirts of  the  village.  The  line  of  march  was  an  extensive  one,  comprising 
all  the  principal  streets  and  passing  around  the  green. 

Seveial  fine  arches  had  been  erected,  bearing  appropriate  inscriptions, 
the  houses  of  the  citizens  being  also  most  tastefully  decorated.  Many  of 
them  were  marked  in  conspicuous  figures  with  the  early  date  of  their  erec- 
tion. The  original  quaint  names  of  certain  localities  were  in  several  in- 
stances revived.  The  procession  at  one  point,  passed  underneath  a  sus- 
pended petticoat,  of  antique  pattern  and  workmanship  ;  it  being  placed  there 
as  a  reminder  that  the  spot  in  question  was  formerly  known  by  the  humble 
name  of  "  Petticoat  Lane.'' 

The  street  parade  lasted  more  than  two  hours,  the  procession  being  every- 
where greeted  by  appreciative  applause. 


HISTORICAL  ADDRESS. 


GUILFORD  FROM   1639  TO   l665- 


SAMUEL  HART,   D.   D.,    PROFESSOR  IN  TRINITY  COLLEGE, 
HARTFORD. 


[Prof.  Hart  is  a  descendant  of  Rev.  John  Hart,   1707,  and  Francis 
Bushnell,   1639.] 


MR.    PRESIDENT,    CITIZENS     OF     THIS    ANCIENT    TOWN, 
LADIES  AND  GENTLEMEN: 

I  suppose  that  it  was  near  the  end  of  June  in  the  year 
1637,  that  Englishmen  first  visited  the  site  of  Guilford.  The 
little  army  of  the  Connecticut  colony  had  marched  against 
the  Pequot  fort  at  Mystic,  and  had  utterly  routed  their 
enemies.  A  few  of  the  Indians  fled  to  the  westward;  and 
some  of  the  Connecticut  soldiers,  led  by  the  friendly  Uncas, 
pursued  them  along  the  coast.  On  a  point  of  land  south  of 
us  a  Pequot  sachem  was  detected  in  his  hiding-place  and 
killed  by  Uncas ;  and  the  sachem's  head,  fastened^  in  an  oak 
tree  at  the  head  of  the  harbor,  gave  to  the  spot  a  name  which 
remains  to  this  day. 

As  the  pursuers  traversed  the  coast  between  the  Connecti- 
cut River  and  the  Quinnipiack  and  still  further  west  to  the 
site  of  the  great  swamp-fight,  they  were  struck  with  the 
beauty  and  the  fertility  of  the  country.  A  few  years  before, 
the  settlers  in  the  Massachusetts  had  learned  of  the  attrac- 
tiveness of  the  land  about  the  place  where  the  Tunxis  River 


149 

falls  into  the  Connecticut,  and  this  had  led  to  the  three  set- 
tlements in  that  fair  valley,  forming  a  coldny  which  took  its 
name  from  the  great  river.  So  now,  when  the  pursuers  of 
the  Pequots  returned  and  told  of  the  rich  plains  along  the 
seashore,  it  is  not  surprising  that  word  of  their  discoveries 
should  reach  others  who  were  looking  for  a  home  to  the  west 
of  the  established  settlements  on  Massachusetts  Bay. ,  Mr. 
John  Davenport  and  his  companions  had  just  arrived  in  Bos- 
ton, and  being,  as  the  quaint  old  historian  says,  "more  fit  for 
Zebulon's  ports  than  for  Issachar's  tents,"  they  came  in  April 
7,  1638,  to  the  mouth  of  the  Quinnipiack,  and  there  laid  the 
foundations  of  an  independent  plantation  or  colony. 

Meanwhile  the  same  causes  which  led  to  the  earlier  emi- 
grations to  New  England  were  still  operative  in  the  mother 
country.  A  few  of  those  who  had  crossed  the  ocean,  like  the 
Pilgrim  settlers  of  Plymouth,  were  professedly  and  on  princi- 
ple separatists  from  the  Church  of  England ;  but  the  larger 
and  more  influential  part  were  Puritans,  still  professing  and 
claiming  membership  in  the  established  church,  but  believing 
and  teaching  that  the  work  of  the  necessary  reformation  of 
that  church  had  by  no  means  been  completed,  and  in  particu- 
lar objecting  to  certain  rites  and  ceremonies  and  to  the  im- 
position of  rites  and  ceremonies  by  any  general  authority. 
It  was  quite  evident,  from  the  way  in  which  events  were 
shaping  themselves  in  England,  that  neither  the  civil  nor  the 
ecclesiastical  rulers  were  in  sympathy  with  this  party;  and 
there  had  grown  up  among  the  Puritans  a  strong  desire  to 
find  a  home  where  they  should  be  unmolested  in  carrying  out 
their  plans  of  reform  and  making  application  of  them  in  the 
affairs  both  of  Church  and  of  State. 

Nor  need  we  be  surprised  at  learning  that  in  almost  every 
case  the  band  of  emigrants  was  led  by  one  or  two  influential 
men,  generally  by  some  well  educated,  devout,  and  enthusiastic 
clergyman,  whose  wishes  for  a  continuation  of  what  he 
thought  the  work  of  reformation  were  sternly  resisted  by 
those  in  authority.  So  Thomas  Hooker  had  been  the  founder 
of  Hartford  and  John  Davenport  the  founder  of  New  Haven, 
and  so  Henry  Whitfield  was  the  founder  of  Guilford.  A  uni- 


versity  graduate  and  a  scholar  of  the  inns  of  court,  he  had 
entered  holy  orde'rs  and  taken  the  well  endowed  living  of 
Ockley  in  Surrey.  He  had  also  preached  in  many  other 
places  of  the  neighborhood,  and  had  gained  for  himself  much 
influence  and  a  good  reputation.  When  therefore  he 
embraced  the  views  of  the  Puritan  or  non-conforming  party 
in  the  English  Church,  he  readily  gathered  about  him  a  con- 
siderable number  of  men  who  looked  to  him  for  guidance 
amid  the  troubles  of  the  times.  We  are  told  that  the  mem- 
bers of  his  company  came  from  Kent  and  Surrey  and  Sussex, 
and  it  certainly  appears  that  they  were  from  somewhat  widely 
scattered  homes  and  of  different  stations  in  society.  Their 
final  plans  for  emigration  must  have  been  made  after  corre- 
spondence with  Mr.  Davenport  at  Quinnipiack  and  consulta- 
tion with  George  Fenwick,  Esq.,  who  had  returned  to 
England  in  1636,  after  a  few  months'  sojourn  at  Saybrook. 
When  the  first  shipload  sailed,  in  the  spring  of  1639, tnev  to°k 
with  them  Mr.  Davenport's  only  child,  who  had  been  left  in 
England  on  account  of  his  tender  years,  and  they  also  had 
for  fellow-passengers  Mr.  Fenwick  and  his  bride,  Lady  Alice 
Boteler,  the  "  Lady  Fenwick "  of  our  early  history,  both  of 
them  enthusiastic  supporters  of  Mr.  Whitfield's 

In  this  vessel,  of  three  hundred  and  fifty  tons,  which  sailed 
directly  from  England  to  Quinnipiack,  were  twenty-five  men 
destined  for  the  new  settlement  on  the  southern  shore  of  New 
England,  with  their  families  and  their  household  goods.  We 
are  told  that  the  cattle  which  they  had  with  them  belonged  to 
Lady  Fenwick,  and  that  she  gave  them  to  Mr.  Whitfield,  by 
whom  they  were  taken  to  Guilford  for  the  use  of  his  colony. 
If  tradition  can  be  trusted,  they  were  the  ancestors  of  that 
sturdy  breed  of  red  cattle  which  have  been  and  still  are  so 
serviceable  to  the  farmers  of  this  town  and  parts  adjacent. 

On  the  first  day  of  June,  1639,  the  twenty-five  settlers, 
being  still  on  shipboard,  made  a  covenant  with  one  another  in 
these  words  : 

"  We,  whose  names  are  hereunder  written,  intending  by 
God's  gracious  permission  to  plant  ourselves  in  New  England, 
and,  if  it  may  be,  in  the  southerly  part,  about  Quinnipiack: 


we  do  faithfully  promise  each  to  each,  for  ourselves  and  fami- 
lies and  those  that  belong  to  us,  that  we  will,  the  Lord  assist- 
ing us,  sit  down  and  join  ourselves  together  in  one  entire 
plantation,  and  to  be  helpful  each  to  the  other  in  every  com- 
mon work,  according  to  every  man's  ability  and  as  need  shall 
require  ;  and  we  promise  not  to  desert  or  leave  each  other  or 
the  plantation  but  with  the  consent  of  the  rest  or  the  greater 
part  of  the  company  who  have  entered  into  this  agreement. 
As  for  our  gathering  together  in  a  church  way  and  the  choice 
of  officers  and  members  to  be  joined  together  in  that  way,  we 
do  refer  ourselves  until  such  time  as  it  shall  please  God  to 
settle  us  in  our  plantation." 

At  the  end  of  a  voyage  of  seven  weeks,  this  company  of 
emigrants  came  safely  into  the  harbor  at  Quinnipiack  ;  and 
"  the  sight  of  the  harbor  did  so  please  the  captain  and  all  the 
passengers  that  he  called  it  the  Fair  Haven."  The  exact  date 
of  the  arrival  of  the  good  ship  must  remain  uncertain.  It 
would  seem  to  have  been  the  prevailing  opinion  that  the  com- 
pact was  signed  near  the  end  of  the  voyage,  and  that  the  new 
comers  were  present  at  the  famous  meeting  on  the  4th  of 
June — but  three  days  later — when  the  foundations  of  the  New 
Haven  church  and  commonwealth  were  laid.  But  it  seems 
hardly  possible  that  the  framing  of  this  compact  by  men  who 
were  all  in  agreement  and  practically  committed  to  it,  should 
have  been  left  till  the  end  of -an  unusually  protracted  voyage, 
when  their  ship  was  finding  its  way  along  a  strange  coast. 
Nor,  again,  does  Mr.  Davenport's  letter  to  Lady  Vere,  in 
which,  under  date  of  September  28,  1639,  he  writes  her  of  the 
safe  arrival  of  his  child  "  with  sundry  desirable  friends,"  give 
the  impression  that  nearly  four  months  had  elapsed  since  they 
came  to  land.  But  we  have  direct  evidence  in  the  matter 
from  the  recorded  statement  that  one  of  the  colonists,  John 
Hoaclley,  joined  Mr.  Whitfield  on  or  soon  after  the  26th  day 
of  April,  and  from  Winthrop's  entry  in  his  journal  that  the 
ships  arrived  at  Quinnipiack  in  July.  There  can  therefore  be 
little  doubt  that  the  good  ships  which  brought  the  first  settlers 
for  this  colony — though  the  precise  place  in  which  they  were 
to  settle  was  not  yet  determined — left  England  in  May  and 


152 

reached  the  Fair  Haven  in  July  of  the  year  1639.  It  is  possi- 
ble that  some  of  their  companions,  with  perhaps  the  settlers 
of  Southold,  did  not  arrive  in  Quinnipiack  till  the  first  of 
October.  But  though  none  of  them  were  in  time  to  attend 
the  meeting  of  the  New  Haven  planters  in  which  were  adopted 
the  fundamental  principles  that  "  the  Scriptures  do  hold  forth 
a  perfect  rule  for  the  direction  and  government  of  all  men  in 
all  duties,"  and  that  "foee  burgesses  shall  be  chosen  out  of 
church  members,"  they  must  all  have  learned  of  what  had 
thus  far  been  done,  and  nearly  all  must  have  watched  with 
much  interest  the  foundation  of  the  church  on  its  seven  pil- 
lars on  the  22d  day  of  August.  Before  the  establishment  of 
the  civil  court  by  the  same  seven  chosen  men  and  the  other 
church  members  on  the  25th  day  of  October,  the  new  comers 
had  found  a  home  for  themselves  in  the  rich  land  on  the  coast 
at  Menunkatuck,  about  midway  between  Mr.  Davenport's 
settlement  at  Quinnipiack  and  Mr.  Fenwick's  fort  at  the  mouth 
of  the  Connecticut. 

Mr.  Whitfield's  company,  amounting  to  about  forty  planters 
with  their  families,  had  never  been  considered,  nor  had  they 
considered  themselves,  as  members  of  the  community  among 
which  they  had  been  sojourning  for  a  tim4e.  They  but  waited 
to  decide  where  they  would  take  up  their  abode,  and  to  make 
the  necessary  arrangements  for  their  removal.  They  found  a 
spot  attractive  to  themselves  as  well  by  its  natural  beauty  as 
by  its  promising  to  be  a  good  farming  country,  in  a  secluded 
part  of  New  England,  removed  from  the  controversies  of  the 
church  in  Massachusetts  and  the  democracy  of  the  state  in 
Connecticut,  not  likely  to  be  troubled  by  adverse  claims 
under  any  royal  patent,  and  where  they  could  enjoy  the  -con- 
sciousness of  having  done  a  good  deed  in  occupying  the  land 
before  the  Dutch  could  take  possession  of  it.  Their  first 
corporate  action,  so  far  as  we  know  (unless  indeed  we  can  as- 
sume that  all  entered  into  a  compact  equivalent  to  that  which 
was  signed  by  those  who  came  on  the  first  ship),  was  with 
reference  to  the  purchase  of  the  Menunkatuck  lands  from  the 
Indians.  They  met  in  the  public  hall  of  the  Quinnipack 
planters,  Mr.  Newman's  barn — it  must  have  been  in  August, 


153 

1639 — ancl  agreed  that  the  lands  should  be  purchased  and  the 
deeds  from  the  Indians  taken  in  the  name  of  Henry  Whit- 
field,  Robert  Kitchell,  William  Leete,  William  Chittenden, 
John  Bishop,  and  John  Caffinge.  For  what  seem  to  us  small 
considerations  in  clothes,  utensils,  and  wampum,  they  secured 
from 'the  Indian  possessors  or  claimants  of  the  lands  various 
agreements  or  deeds  which  were  rather  of  the  nature  of  quit- 
claims, though  in  a  certain  way  they  purported  to  warrant 
the  titles.  Thus  the  land  between  Ajicomick  or  Stony  Creek 
and  Ruttawoo  (otherwise  calied  Moosamattuck)  or  East 
River,  including  the  great  plain  and  the  site  of  the  village, 
was  purchased  from  "the  sachem  squaw,"  Shaumpishuh,  on 
the  29th  of  September,  1639.  More  than  two  years  later,  on 
the  i/th  of  December,  1641,  Uncas  the  Mohegan  sold  to 
the  English  planters  the  land  between  the  East  River  and 
Tuxis  or  Tuxishoag  (a  pond  near  the  place  where  the  East 
Guilford  meeting-house  was  afterwards  built),  together  with 
the  island  "called  by  the  English  Falcon  Island."  Another 
deed  of  the  same  part  of  the  main  land  had  already  been 
secured  from  Weekvvosh,  the  pious  Niantic;  but  it  seems  to 
have  been  thought  safe  to  satisfy  all  claimants.  The  limits 
of  the  plantation  were  extended  still  further  eastward  to 
Hammonassett  River  by  a  gift  from  Mr.  Fenwick,  under  date 
of  October  22,  1645,  in  consideration  of  his  esteem  for  Mr. 
Whitfield  and  in  order  to  encourage  the  settlers  to  remain  in 
the  place  which  they  had  chosen.  Mr.  Fenwick  had  bought 
of  the  Indians,  we  are  told,  the  land  from  Tuxis  to  Niantic. 
The  first  agreement  with  Shaumpishuh  was  evidently  made 
at  Menunkatuck,  and  it  seems  clear  that  the  settlement  had 
already  begun,  two  hundred  and  fifty  years  ago  this  very 
month.  It  was  witnessed  by  John  Higginson,  the  young 
chaplain  from  Saybrook  Fort,  who  acted  as  Indian  interpre- 
ter— perhaps  this  was  the  first  time  that  he  met  his  future 
wife,  Mr.  Whitfield's  daughter — and  by  Robert  Newman  of 
Quinnipiack.  The  land  on  the  plain  was  laid  out  somewhat 
after  the  manner  of  New  Haven  (for  we  may  now  use  the 
name  which  was  soon  given  to  the  plantation  west  of  us),  with 
a  large  public  lot  at  the  centre  reserved  for  the  general  use  of 


154 

the  community,  while  about  it  and  in  the  outlying  fields  were 
house-lots  and  farm-lots  for  individual  planters.  At  New 
Haven,  however,  which  was  intended  for  a  city,  the  central 
square  was  surrounded  by  eight  other  squares  of  equal  size  ; 
while  here,  where  it  was  the  intention  of  the  settlers  to  live 
as  an  agricultural  community,  the  lay-out  of  the  ground  was 
less  regular.  Some  houses  must  have  been  built  before  the 
winter  for  the  accommodation  of  the  fifty  families,  more  or 
less,  who  had  removed  here,  but  it  is  not  likely  that  Mr.  Whit- 
field's  stone  mansion — one  almost  wonders  whether  it  should 
not  be  called  a  fort — was  erected  before  the  spring.  At  any 
rate,  when  this  and  other  stone  houses  had  been  built  and  the 
stone  meeting-house  stood  in  its  place  on  the  public  square, 
surrounded  by  a  considerable  number  of  wooden  dwellings, 
each  on  its  own  lot  enclosed  by  palisadoes,  there  must  have 
been  the  appearance  of  a  large  and  thriving  settlement. 

It  seems  certain  that  the  three  towns  on  the  great  river, 
which  we  now  know  as  Windsor,  Hartford,  and  Wethersfield, 
had  from  the  first  formed  practically  one  colony ;  at  any  rate, 
they  had  since  the  I4th  of  January,  1639,  been  united  into 
one  government  under  a  written  constitution.  But  there  was 
not  at  first  in  any  sense  a  jurisdiction  of  New  Haven,  nor  had 
the  colonies  in  the  neighborhood  of  the  older  settlement  any 
legal  or  quasi-legal  connection  with  it.  The  Milford  church 
was  organized  at  New  Haven  before  the  removal  to  the  west ; 
but  on  the  removal  Milford  became  an  independent  colony, 
and  within  three  years  it  was  administering  its  government 
on  principles  inconsistent  with  those  which  were  maintained 
at  New  Haven.  The  settlers  here  at  Menunkatuck  had  come 
from  England  for  the  express  purpose  of  establishing  a  colony 
by  themselves  ;  they  had  but  landed  at  New  Haven  and 
sojourned  there  for  a  few  weeks  ;  doubtless  their  principal 
men  had  consulted  with  Mr.  Davenport  and  other  persons  of 
influence  there  as  to  the  best  way  in  which  they  might  organ- 
ize themselves,  and  we  shall  see  that  to  a  considerable  extent 
they  followed  New  Haven  precedents  ;  but  they  had  also,  we 
may  feel  sure,  seen  some  weak  points  in  the  form  of  govern- 
ment adopted  by  them,  and  we  need  not  be  surprised  to  find 


155 

that  they  attempted  to  guard  against  certain  faults  which  they 
had  observed  in  the  New  Haven  constitution. 

Allusion  has  already  been  made  to  the  principles  of  the 
theocratic  (or  rather  ecclesiocratic)  government  established 
at  New  Haven.  They  were,  in  brief,  these :  that  the  Scrip- 
tures are  a  sufficient  guide  for  the  conduct  of  all  men  under 
all  circumstances,  and  that  the  privileges  of  freemanship  or  of 
suffrage  in  any  community  belong  only  to  those  who  are 
members  of  the  Church  of  Christ.  This  condition  of  citizen- 
ship, rejected  by  the  Pilgrims  who  settled  Plymouth,  was  in- 
sisted upon  by  all  strict  Puritans.  And  in  fact,  apart  from 
the  maintenance  of  fundamental  doctrines,  in  which  they 
claimed  that  they  did  not  dissent  from  the  standard  of  the 
Church  of  England,  it  was  almost  the  only  thing  which  they 
held  in  common  with  the  establishment  at  home.  But  there 
was  this  most  important  difference :  that  the  English  law  de- 
termined church  membership,  for  all  political  purposes,  by  the 
simple  test  of  conformity  to  church  ordinances  ;  while  the 
Puritans,  asserting  that  this  was  one  of  the  matters  in  which 
there  was  need  of  further  reformation  in  England,  declared 
that  even  in  the  eye  of  the  law  none  should  be  accounted 
church  members  except  such  as  were  visible  saints  and  had 
satisfied  the  church  that  they  were  such.  Thus  this  principle 
had  been  stoutly  maintained  by  the  Puritans  in  Massachusetts 
Bay,  who  had  practically  admitted  the  elders  of  the  church  to 
a  co-ordinate,  or  even  a  dominating,  share  in  the  government; 
and  it  was  no  less  stoutly  maintained  by  Mr.  Davenport,  who 
had  secured  its  acceptance  in  his  colony  by  a  vote  of  the 
whole  body  of  planters,  those  who  were  not  church  members 
surrendering  such  political  rights  as  they  might  possibly  have 
claimed.  In  the  Connecticut  colony,  however,  under  the 
guidance  of  Mr.  Hooker,  this  principle  of  Puritanism  had 
been  exchanged  for  the  contrary  principle  of  the  Pilgrim  sepa- 
ratists ;  and  there  was  in  the  river  colony  no  religious  or  ec- 
clesiastical test  required  for  admission  to  citizenship  or  for 
the  exercise  of  the  franchise.  Though  we  have  no  direct  evi- 
dence in  the  matter,  it  certainly  appears  that  Mr.  Whitfield 
was  not  disposed  entirely  to  agree  with  Mr.  Davenport  and 


156 

the  colonists  of  the  Massachusetts  in  deciding  this  funda- 
mental question  of  citizenship,  even  if  he  was  unwilling  to 
express  any  open  dissent  from  neighbors  and  friends.  It 
seems  certain,  also,  that  there  was  less  social  inequality  in  the 
agricultural  community  here  than  in  the  commercial  settle- 
ment at  New  Haven ;  and  we  can  well  believe  that  those  who 
had  entered  into  the  compact  on  shipboard  as  political  equals, 
would  object  to  resigning  all  political  power  to  those  among 
themselves  who  should  be  approved  as  visible  saints.  These 
considerations,  as  it  seems  to  me,  go  far  to  explain  the  long 
delay  here  in  establishing  a  church  and  organizing  a  state. 
The  Menunkatuck  colony  was,  and  considered  itself,  abso- 
lutely independent;  and  its  members  seem  to  have  felt  great 
unwillingness  to  conform  to  the  principles  of  the  New  Haven 
government,  while  yet  there  appears  to  have  been  a  desire 
not  to  dissent  from  them  in  an  unnecessarily  open  way.  Cer- 
tain it  is  that  those  who  settled  here  did  not  for  a  time  make 
any  formal  decision  in  regard  to  their  permanent  organiza- 
tion. 

We  have  seen  that  the  deeds  from  the  Indians  were  taken, 
on  behalf  of  all  the  planters,  in  the  name  of  six  of  the  more 
prominent  of  their  number.  The  agreement  to  this  effect 
was  made  at  Quinnipiack;  and  the  six  purchasers  signed  a 
covenant  to  the  effect  that  the  purchase  in  their  name  was 
not  to  be  prejudicial  to  the  rights  of  any  of  the  other  planters. 
"  Moreover,"  they  proceed,  "  we  profess  that  our  meaning 
(according  to  their  desires)  [is]  to  resigne  up  all  our  right  in 
trust  in  the  said  purchase  of  lands  into  the  hands  of  the 
church  here,  so  soone  as  it  shall  please  God  to  gather  one 
amongst  us,  whether  we  be  members  of  said  church  or  not." 
This  covenant  was  made  apparently  in  August,  1639,  and  in 
it  the  influence  of  New  Haven  and  of  the  action  taken  there 
is  sufficiently  evident;  though  the  insertion  of  the  parenthe- 
tical clause,  "  according  to  their  desires,"  gives  a  decidedly 
democratic  flavor  to  the  theocratic  decree.  But,  once  settled 
on  their  own  lands,  our  ancestors  showed  no  haste  about  tak- 
ing further  action.  They  left  the  title  to  their  property  in 
the  hands  of  their  six  representatives,  and  they  evidently  re- 


157 

garded  these  men  as  having  all  necessary  authority  as  magis- 
trates. We  have  the  record  of  a  public  meeting  on  the  second 
day  of  February,  1642 — that  is  to  say,  some  two  years  and  a 
half  after  the  settlement  had  been  made — which  shows  that 
no  change  had  yet  taken  place,  while  it  intimates  that  some 
here,  and  perhaps  some  in  New  Haven,  were  getting  uneasy 
that  things  had  been  left  in  this  condition  so  long.  At  that 
meeting  it  was  "  agreed  by  consent "  that  the  trust  should 
"  remaine  in  the  hands  of  the  six  purchasers  until  a  church 
be  gathered  here,"  and  also — the  form  of  the  words  is  very 
instructive — "that  the  civill  power  for  administration  of  jus- 
tice and  preservation  of  peace  "  should  "remaine  in  the  hands 
of  Robert  Kitchell,  William  Chittenden,  John  Bishop,  and 
William  Leete,  formerly  chosen  for  that  work,  untill  some 
may  be  chosen  out  of  the  church  that  shall  be  here  gathered." 
It  is  quite  evident,  therefore,  that  either  by  virtue  of  their 
original  designation  as  representatives  of  the  planters,  or  by 
some  subsequent  act,  four  out  of  the  six  selected  men  (Mr. 
Whitfield  being  perhaps  excused  on  account  of  his  other 
duties,  and  Mr.  Caffinge  having  removed  to  New  Haven) 
acted  as  magistrates  for  a  considerable  time.  The  organiza- 
tion of  a  church,  with  the  arrangement  of  civil  matters  which 
waited  on  this,  was  still  deferred.  Mr.  Whitfield  doubtless 
preached  on  the  Lord's  Day,  and  may  have  allowed  himself, 
in  virtue  of  his  ordination  in  England  and  his  acknowledged 
position,  the  exercise  of  some  of  the  other  functions  of  the 
ministry;  but  unless  he  held  doctrines  quite  different  from 
those  .of  other  representative  men  among  the  Puritans,  the 
ordinances  of  the  Church  were  not  administered,  nor  indeed 
could  they  be  administered  before  a  local  or  congregational 
body  of  professing  Christians  should  be  gathered. 

In  this  condition  of  things  nearly  four  years  passed.  At 
last,  in  1643,  a  church  was  founded,  after  Mr.  Davenport's 
fashion,  on  seven  men  corresponding  to  the  New  Haven  pil- 
lars, and  on  the  iQth  day  of  June  (perhaps  the  very  day  of  the 
foundation  of  the  church)  the  original  purchasers  "  resigned 
up  their  right  into  the  hands  of  the  church,  and  those  four 
of  them  also  which  were  chosen  to  the  exercise  of  civill  power 


158 

did  express  that  their  trust  and  power  for  that  work  were  now 
terminated  and  ended."  To  understand  why  this  action  took 
place  at  this  time  it  seems  necessary  to  look  for  a  moment 
away  from  the  local  interests  of  this  colony.  The  colonies  of 
Plymouth,  Massachusetts  Bay,  Connecticut,  and  New  Haven, 
though  not  in  agreement  in  all  points  ecclesiastical  and  civil, 
were  yet  sufficiently  in  accord  to  be  willing  to  unite  against 
common  enemies;  and  such  common  enemies  they  had  in  the 
French  to  the  east,  the  Dutch  at  the  Manhadoes,  the  Swedes 
to  the  south,  and  the  Indians  on  all  sides,  not  to  mention  the 
English  across  the  sea.  Commissioners  from  these  four  col- 
onies met  and  signed  articles  of  confederation  at  Boston  on 
the  iQth  day  of  May,  1643.  New  Haven,  now  including  in 
its  jurisdiction  Stamford  and  Southold,  was  of  sufficient 
importance  to  enter  the  confederacy;  but  what  was  a  compar- 
atively small  and  isolated  plantation  like  that  at  Menunka- 
tuck  to  do  ?  Evidently  the  only  thing  possible — for  to  stand 
alone  was  neither  safe  nor  desirable — was  to  effect  a  union 
with  New  Haven.  Mr.  Whitfield  might  possibly  have  thought 
of  looking  to  the  east  and  uniting  with  Saybrook,  where  his 
friend  Mr.  Fenwick  was  still  acting  as  governor;  but  Con- 
necticut and  Saybrook  had  had  a  common  representation  at 
the  forming  of  the  confederacy,  and  the  absorption  of  Say- 
brook  into  Connecticut  was  but  a  question  of  time ;  in  fact, 
it  was  brought  about  before  the  end  of  the  next  year.  It  is 
not  likely  that  the  colony  here  felt  itself  at  all  drawn  towards 
union  with  Connecticut.  It  seemed  absolutely  necessary, 
therefore,  that  it  should  unite  itself  with  New  Haven.  To 
this  New  Haven  would  readily  consent,  but  only  on  condition 
that  the  terms  of  citizenship  in  the  united  colony  and  in  each 
of  its  members  should  be  the  same  as  those  which  had  been 
irrevocably  established  by  herself;  and  so  this  act  of  confede- 
ration of  the  New  England  colonies  seems  the  immediate 
occasion  of  the  organization  of  a  church  and  the  establish- 
ment of  a  constitution  here.  Thus  it  was  that  on  (or  a  little 
before)  the  iQth  of  June,  1643,  seven  men  were  chosen,  appar- 
ently by  the  whole  body  of  planters,  to  be  the  nucleus  of  a 
church.  They  were  Mr.  Henry  Whitfield,  Mr.  John  Higginson, 


159 

Mr.  Samuel  Desborough,  Mr.  William  Leete,  Mr.  Jacob  Sheate, 
John  Mepham,  and  John  Hoadley.  Then  the  former  trustees 
resigned  the  title  of  the  land  and  the  exercise  of  the  civil 
authority.  "Whereof,"  so  runs  the  record,  "  notice  being 
taken  at  the  publicke  meeting,  it  was  further  propounded, 
agreed,  and  concluded  that  whereas  for  the  time  past  (while  as 
yet  there  was  no  church  gathered  amongst  us)  we  did  choose 
out  four  men,  into  whose  hands  we  did  put  full  power  and 
authority  to  act,  order,  and  dispatch  all  matters  respecting  the 
publicke  weal  and  civill  government  of  this  plantation  untill 
a  church  was  gathered  among  us,  which  the  Lord  in  mercy 
having  now  done  according  to  the  desires  of  our  hearts,  and 
the  said  four  men  at  the  publicke  meeting  having  resigned  up 
their  trust  and  power,  to  the  intent  that  all  power  and  author- 
ity might  be  rightly  setled  with  the  church,  as  most  safe  and 
suitable  for  securing  of  those  mayne  ends  which  wee  pro- 
pounded to  ourselves  in  our  coming  hither  and  sitting  downe 
together,  namely  that  we  might  settle  and  uphold  all  the 
ordinances  of  God  in  an  explicite  congregational  church  way 
with  most  purity,  peace,  and  liberty  for  the  benefit  both  of 
ourselves  and  our  posterities  after  us,  we  doe  therefore  now  all 
and  every  of  us  agree,  order,  and  conclude  that  only  such 
planters  as  are  also  members  of  the  church  here  shall  bee  and 
bee  called  ffreemen  and  that  such  ffreemen  only  shall  have 
power  to  elect  magistrates,  deputies,  and  all  other  officers  of 
publicke  trust  or  authority  in  matters  of  importance  concern- 
ing either  the  civill  affaires  or  government  here,  from  among 
themselves  and  not  elsewhere,  and  to  take  an  account  of  all 
such  officers  for  the  honest  and  faithful  discharge  of  their 
several  places  respectively,  and  to  deal  with  and  proceed 
against  them  for  all  misdemeanors  and  delinquencies  in  the 
several  places  according  to  rule ;  unto  which  magistrates, 
deputies,  or  officers  wee  doe  ffreely  subject  ourselves  in  all 
lawful  commands,  provided  that  they  be  yearly  chosen  from 
time  to  time,  and  provided  also  that  no  laws  or  orders  be  by 
them  made  before  all  the  planters  then  and  there  inhabiting 
and  residing  have  due  warning  and  notice  of  the  meeting  or 
of  what  is  to  be  done,  that  so  all  weighty  objections  may  be 


i6o 

duly  attended,  considered,  and  according   to   righteousnesse 
sattisfyingly  removed." 

I  have  quoted  this  document  thus  far  at  length,  because  it 
seems  to  me  that  we  cannot  otherwise  understand  the  consti- 
tution of  the  government  here  between  the  time  of  the  union 
with  New  Haven  and  that  of  the  union  with  Connecticut. 
The  church  had  been  organized  on  the  New  Haven  model, 
except  that,  as  we  are  expressly  told  on  good  authority,  Mr. 
Whitfield  received  no  installation  or  ordination  over  it  and 
that  it  had  no  ruling  elder  ;  and,  still  in  accordance  with  the 
New  Haven  model,  all  civil  power  and  authority  had  been 
surrendered  into  the  hands  of  the  church,  and  it  was  thereupon 
provided  that  none  but  church  members,  who  were  about 
two-fifths  of  the  whole  number  of  planters,  should  exercise 
any  of  the  rights  of  freemen.  So  far  the  exigencies  of  their 
present  circumstances  had  prevailed  upon  all  to  agree  with 
those  who  wished  the  civil  government  to  be  under  the  con- 
trol of  the  ecclesiastical.  This  was  certain  to  secure  for  the 
plantation  admission  on  equal  terms  to  the  New  Haven  juris- 
diction. But  the  further  provision  that  all  the  planters, 
whether  freemen  or  not,  should  have  notice  of  all  meetings 
with  opportunity  to  bring  forward  weighty  objections,  shows 
that  due  consideration  was  had  for  those  who  preferred  the 
Connecticut  rather  than  the  New  Haven  form  of  government, 
and,  in  short,  wished  a  democracy  rather,  than  an  ecclesio- 
cracy ;  it  was  a  satisfactory  assurance  that  none  of  the  plant- 
ers should  be  really  deprived  of  any  rights ;  and  to  this  com- 
promise general  assent  seems  to  have  been  given. 

In  fact,  the  security  for  the  interests  of  those  planters  who 
were  not  freemen  was  even  greater  than  appears  from  the 
part  of  the  record  which  has  just  been  read.  They  were  not 
only  notified  of  and  allowed  to  attend  the  general  courts  (or 
town  meetings,  as  we  should  call  them);  they  were  required  to 
attend,  and  fined  for  absence  or  tardiness,  unless  they  should 
have  a  satisfactory  excuse,  or  "  for  going  away  before  the 
meeting  be  broken  up."  This  provision  meant  more  than  the 
requirement  in  New  Haven  that  all  the  planters  should  be 
present  at  the  meetings  of  the  general  courts  ;  for  from  the 


regulations  which  follow  as  to  orderly  speaking,  it  seems  quite 
evident  that  any  planter  could  be  heard,  provided  he  did  not 
"  continue  speech  longer  by  impertinencies,  needless  repeti- 
tions, or  multiplication  of  words  which  rather  tends  to  darken 
than  clear  the  truth  or  right  of  the  matter."  It  is  not  at  all 
likely  that  under  such  a  constitution  as  this  any  action  of  im- 
portance was  taken  or,  for  that  matter,  any  officer  of  impor- 
tance was  elected  without  the  consent  of  the  more  influential 
part  of  the  planters  as  well  as  that  of  the  major  part  of  the 
freemen. 

A  further  provision  of  the  constitution  adopted  here  seems 
to  me  to  show  that  our  ancestors  were  guarding  against  what 
they  thought  to  be  another  error  in  the  arrangement  of  mat- 
ters at  New  Haven.  In  the  older  colony  there  had  been 
several  men  of  wealth,  and  great  inequality  in  the  amounts 
which  the  settlers  were  considered  to  have  put  into  the  com- 
mon funds,  and  consequently  like  inequality  in  the  allotments 
of  the  public  lands,  the  investments  varying  from  ten  to  three 
thousand  pounds.  Here,  precautions  were  taken  against  the 
growing-up  of  an  aristocracy  of  wealth.  It  was  "agreed  and 
ordered  that  no  planter  shall  put  in  his  estate  above  five  hun- 
dred pounds  to  require  accommodation  proportionable  in  any 
divisions  of  lands  in  this  plantation,  except  it  be  with  the  ex- 
press consent  of  the  major  part  of  the  ffreemen  met  together 
and  for  some  good  cause  and  grounds  granting  liberty  to  some 
such  as  desire  a  further  inlargement."  And,  on  the  other 
hand,  it  was  provided  that  the  poorest  planter  should  be 
reckoned,  so  far  as  the  distribution  of  land  was  concerned,  as 
having  fifty  pounds  estate.  These  principles  and  rules  were 
very  possibly  adopted  at  an  earlier  date  than  that  under  which 
they  appear  on  the  records  ;  but,  in  any  case,  they  are  in  op- 
position, and  it  must  have  been  intentional  opposition,  to 
those  which  were  in  force  at  New  Haven.  And  the  provision 
that  none  should  be  freemen  or  burgesses  except  such  as  were 
members  of  the  Guilford  church — "  the  church  here,"  as  the 
vote  reads — was  a  safeguard  against  external  pressure  from 
New  Haven  or  elsewhere. 

Matters  having   been   thus   arranged,  we  read  as  the  open- 


l62 

ins:  minute  of  a  record   of  "a  General   Court  held  at  New 

o 

Haven  for  the  Plantations  within  this  Jurisdiction,  the  6th 
of  July,  1643  "  :  "  Mr.  Leete  and  Mr.  Disbourough  of  Manun- 
katuck  were  admitted  members  and  received  the  charge  of 
freemen  for  this  court."  A  little  lower  down  in  the  same 
record  we  find  "  Manunkatuck  named  Guildforde";  and  again, 
that  representation  might  not  be  unaccompanied  by  taxation, 
it  is  recorded  that  Guilford  was  ordered  to  pay  five  pounds 
"  towards  the  charges  about  the  combination."  On  the  23d 
of  the  following  October,  Milford  was  admitted  to  the  juris- 
diction, a  difficulty  as  to  her  six  free  burgesses  who  were  not 
church  members  having  been  disposed  of;  on  the  26th  day 
of  the  same  month  a  court  of  elections  was  held,  no  magis- 
trate being  chosen  for  Guilford,  but  Mr.  Leete  and  Mr.  Des- 
borough  being  chosen  deputies  ;  and  on  the  following  day  a 
constitution  was  adopted.  In  accordance  with  its  provisions, 
all  the  free  burgesses  in  the  jurisdiction  voted  annually  for  a 
governor,  deputy  governor,  and  other  magistrates  (these 
latter  being  selected  with  reference  to  the  needs  of  each  plan- 
tation or  town),  who  together  formed  a  court  of  magistrates, 
and  the  burgesses  of  each  plantation  elected  two  deputies, 
who  sat  with  the  magistrates  in  the  general  court  for  the 
jurisdiction  to  make  laws,  impose  taxes,  and  hear  and  decide 
appeals  according  to  the  Scriptures,  the  concurrence  of  both 
magistrates  and  deputies  being  required  for  an  act  of  the 
court.  For  local  courts  of  justice  in  inferior  causes,  the  mag- 
istrate or  magistrates  chosen  for  the  plantation  sat  with  fit 
and  able  men  chosen  by  the  free  burgesses  of  the  plantation 
from  among  themselves.  At  first,  as  we  have  seen,  Guilford 
had  no  magistrate;  and  the  town  was  allowed  for  a  time  a 
court  of  four  deputies.  In  1646,  Mr.  Desborough  appears  as 
magistrate,  and  he  probably  served  in  that  capacity  until  his ' 
return  to  England  in  1651.  Mr.  Leete  was  chosen  in  1653, 
and  he  held  the  office  (including,  of  course,  the  years  in  which 
he  was  deputy-governor  and  governor)  until  the  time  of  the 
union  with  Connecticut. 

Two  matters  call  for  a  moment's  notice  before  we  pass  on. 
Of  the  quattnorviri,  or  body  of  four  men,  who  administered  the 


1 63 

civil  affairs  of  this  settlement  until  the  time  of  the  organiza- 
tion of  a  church,  and  who  then  surrendered  their  powers  to 
the  seven  church-pillars  and  to  those  whom  they  should  in- 
corporate with  themselves,  and  who  must  therefore  have  been 
men  of  prominence  among  the  settlers,  one  only,  Mr.  Leete, 
was  of  sufficient  ecclesiastical  eminence  to  be  selected  as  a 
pillar;  two  others  were,  or  soon  became,  freemen;  but  the 
fourth  does  not  appear  to  have  attained  that  honor.  As  to 
the  pillars  themselves — I  use  the  word,  though  it  does  n'ot 
appear  on  the  records — it  is  interesting  to  observe  that  they 
were  all  young  men.  Mr.  Whitfield  himself  was  but  forty- 
six  years  old;  and  he  was  far  the  oldest  of  the  seven.  Mr. 
Leete  was  a  man  of  thirty  years;  Mr.  Higginson  and  Mr. 
Sheaf e  were  twenty-seven  years  old;  John  Hoadley  was  a  year 
younger;  Mr.  Desborough  was  two  years  his  junior;  and  of 
John  Mepham  we  are  told  that  he  was  one  of  the  youngest 
of  the  settlers.  "  In  fact,  it  appears  that  most  of  those  who 
came  from  England  to  Manunkatuck  were  young  men;  and 
their  life  and  actions  cannot  be  rightly  understood  if  we  fail 
to  remember  that  they  brought  here  a  youthful  vigor  and 
enthusiasm. 

The  name  of  Guilford,  given  to  this  town  at  the  time  of  its 
incorporation  into  New  Haven  colony,  and,  as  we  are  told, 
at  the  desire  of  its  inhabitants,  may  have  been  already  in 
common  use.  We  are  told  that  the  site  was  selected  by  the 
first  settlers  because  the  land  here  seemed  low,  moist,  and 
rich,  and  promised  to  be  liberal  to  the  husbandman,  and  thus 
reminded  them  of  the  home  which  they  had  left  in  England  ; 
and,  we  are  further  told,  that  as  many  of  them  had  lived  at 
Guildford,  the  county  town  of  Surrey,  they  adopted  this  name 
for  their  new  home.  In  point  of  fact,  however,  we  do  not 
know  that  any  of  the  settlers  came  from  Guildford,  or  more 
than  three  of  them  from  Surrey  ;  these  three  were  Mr.  Whit- 
field  and  two  of  his  former  parisioners  at  Ockley,  William 
Dudley  and  Thomas  Norton.  It  would  not  be  unreasonable, 
however,  to  assume  that  the  name  of  the  English  Guildford 
was  given  to  this  place  at  the  suggestion  of  some  one  or  more 
whom  it  reminded  of  the  country  at  or  near  the  shiretovvn 


164 

which,  perhaps,  they  had  only  visited.  It  is  by  no  means  easy 
to  assign  the  reason  for  the  adoption  of  English  names  of 
places  in  New  England.  Hartford  in  Connecticut  doubtless 
took  its  name  from  Hertford  in  England,  but  we  have  no  rea- 
son to  believe  that  any  of  its  settlers  came  from  that  ancient 
city,  and  we  are  told  of  but  one  who  had  ever  lived  there. 
For  myself,  I  am  inclined  to  agree  with  those  who  think  that 
the  name  of  this  town  was  taken  but  indirectly  from  the  Eng- 
lish shiretown,  and  that  it  was  given  in  honor  of  Robert  Dud- 
ley, Earl  of  Leicester,  whose  second  title  was  Lord  Guildford. 
Be  this  as  it  may,  it  is  quite  certain  that  but  few  of  Mr.  Whit- 
field's  parishioners  at  Ockley  came  hither  with  him  ;  and,  it 
may  be  added  that  we  must  seek  for  some  other  explanation 
of  the  fact  that  he  received  no  ordination  or  installation  here 
than  the  assumption  that,  as  his  whole  parish  had  removed 
with  him,  he  continued  to  occupy  towards  his  people  the  same 
relation  which  he  had  held  in  England. 

Eor  twelve  years  Guilford  remained  a  constituent  part  of 
one  of  the  confederated  colonies  of  New  England.  It  had 
lost  its  independence  ;  but  it  retained  its  individuality.  Its 
church,  like  that  of  New  Haven,  was  built  on  the  seven  pillars 
of  wisdom's  house,  and  it  had  a  pastor  and  a  teacher ;  but 
neither  of  these  officers  was  ordained  here,  and  it  never  had, 
nor  was  it  ever  willing  to  have,  a  ruling  elder.  Its  civil  gov- 
ernment also  was  modelled  on  that  of  the  older  colony  to  the 
west ;  but  while  none  others  than  members  of  the  church 
here  could  be  burgesses,  the  planters  who  were  not  freemen 
could  easily  make  their  influence  felt.  And  Guilford  took  a 
prominent  part  in  the  public  affairs  of  the  colony  into  which 
she  had  entered.  Mr.  Leete  was  deputy -governor  for  three 
years  (from  1658  to  1660),  and  then  governor  until  the  colony 
ceased  to  have  a  separate  existence,  and  after  1655  he  was 
continuously  one  of  the  commissioners  of  the  New  England 
confederacy.  But  it  is  impossible  to  enter  at  all  fully  into  the 
history  of  those  years,  crowded  as  they  were,  both  here  and 
in  England,  with  events  of  great  importance.  It  must  suffice 
to  allude  to  the  attempt  of  New  Haven  colony,  just  beginning 
to  feel  her  strength,  to  join  with  Connecticut  in  sending  to 


i65 

procure  from  the  Parliament  (which  was  then  in  power)  a 
patent  for  these  parts,  and  the  loss  of  the  New  Haven  com- 
missioner on  the  famous  phantom  ship  ;  to  the  commission 
of  Mr.  William  Leete  and  Mr.  William  Jordan,  both  Guilford 
men,  to  plead  the  case  of  the  New  Haven  colony  before 
Massachusetts  in  regard  to  the  dangers  from  the  Dutch,  and 
again  to  treat  with  Cromwell's  commissioners  concerning  the 
same  matter;  to  Cromwell's  offer  in  1656  to  the  people  of  the 
colony,  or  part  of  them,  to  remove  to  Jamaica  under  his  pro- 
tection, to  which  they  replied  that  "  for  divers  reasons  they 
could  not  conclude  that  God  called  them  to  a  present  remove 
thither ;"  to  Guilford's  offer  of  Mr.  Whitfield's  house  for  a 
grammar  school  for  the  use  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  jurisdic- 
tion in  order  that  "learning  might  be  promoved  as  a  means 
for  the  fitting  of  instruments  for  publique  service  in  church 
and  commonwealth,"  a  plan  which  failed  to  be  carried  into 
effect ;  and  to  the  great  commotion  into  which  the  colony 
was  thrown  by  the  visit  of  two  men  who  were  then  called  the 
Colonels,  and  of  whom  it  has  been  customary  to  speak  in  this 
neighborhood  as  the  Judges,  though  the  English  tories  call 
them  Regicides,  and  to  the  very  doubtful  tradition  that  they 
were  at  one  time  actually  present  in  Guilford.  Passing  by 
these  events  and  others  which  might  seem  to  call  for  men- 
tion, I  must  crave  your  patience  while  I  speak  of  Guilford's 
part  in  the  events  which  led  to  the  absorption  of  New  Haven 
colony  by  Connecticut. 

The  stream  of  emigration  from  Old  England  to  New  Eng- 
land had  been  checked  by  the  success  of  the  parliamentary 
party;  the  settlers  of  Guilford  were  almost  the  last  of  the 
Puritan  emigrants;  and  during  the  days  of  the  Common- 
wealth many  who  had  come  hither  had  returned  to  the  mother 
country,  partly  that  they  might  enjoy  the  changed  order  of 
things  there,  and  partly  that  they  might  defend  it,  now  that 
there  seemed  no  fear  of  prelacy,  from  the -dangers  with  which 
it  was  threatened  by  the  Scotch  Presbyterians.  In  these 
years,  therefore,  our  colonies  here  gained  little  or  no  strength. 
In  1660  the  king  came  to  his  own  again,  and  the  monarchy 
was  restored  in  England  with  the  general  assent  of  the  peo- 


1 66 

pie.  Before  the  year  had  expired  the  colony  of  Massachusetts 
Bay  sent  an  address  to  Charles  the  Second;  and  on  the  I4th 
of  March,  1661,  he  was  formally  acknowledged  in  Connecti- 
cut, the  General  Court  referring  to  informal  action  to  this 
effect  which  had  had  already  been  taken,  and  declaring  that 
all  the  inhabitants  of  the  colony  were  his  Highness's  "loyal 
and  faithful  subjects."  New  Haven  delayed  proclaiming  the 
king  until  the  2ist  of  August,  and  did  it  then  with  no  very 
good  grace.  Connecticut  had  at  once  taken  steps  for  secur- 
ing a  charter  from  his  majesty,  in  order  to  perpetuate  the 
civil  privileges  which  she  had  enjoyed  from  the  first;  and  her 
plans  were  pushed  on  with  characteristic  policy,  the  people 
being  of  one  mind  as  to  the  object  which  they  desired  and 
the  best  way  of  attaining  it.  Governor  Winthrop  sailed  for 
England,  where  the  influence  of  Puritan  loyalists,  such  as  the 
Earl  of  Manchester,  now  lord  chamberlain,  and  Lord  Say  and 
Sele  (one  of  the  original  patentees),  now  lord  privy  seal,  the 
exhibition  of  a  copy  of  the  "  old  patent "  given  by  the  Earl 
of  Warwick,  together  with  his  own  abilities  and  accomplish- 
ments and  (very  probably)  other  considerations  both  politi- 
cal and  personal  prevailed  to  obtain  that  most  remarkable 
document  which  practically  constituted  Connecticut,  with  the 
full  consent  of  England,  a  free  and  independent  state,  and 
which  sufficed  for  her  government  for  more  than  a  hundred 
and  fifty  years.  The  charter  was  dated  April  23d,  1662,  and 
its  terms  were  evidently  suggested,  if  not  dictated,  by  Win- 
throp. That  with  which  we  are  now  specially  concerned  is 
the  question  of  the  boundaries  of  Connecticut;  it  was  to  lie 
between  the  Massachusetts  line  and  the  sea,  and  to  extend 
from  Narragansett  Bay  to  the  Pacific  Ocean;  and  within 
these  limits  was  included  "  the  charterless  and  defenseless 
colony  of  New  Haven." 

Now,  it  is  quite  possible  that  the  charter  might  have  been 
thus  liberally  worded  even  if  it  had  been  known  that  New 
Haven  colony  was  unanimously  opposed  to  inclusion  in  Con- 
necticut. However  willing  Winthrop  may  have  been  to 
consider  the  wishes  of  the  sister  colony  and  whatever  prom- 
ises  of  a  general  nature  he  may  have  made,  he  must  have  seen 


167 

that  it  would  be  quite  impossible  to  exempt  a  portion  (or 
rather  portions)  of  the  land  which  fell  naturally  within  Con- 
necticut's charter,  without  serious  risk  of  losing  the  whole ; 
and  he  must  have  felt  that  it  was  absolutely  necessary  that 
Connecticut  should  be  a  strong  colony,  able  to  maintain  her- 
self against  Massachusetts  and  New  Netherland.  But  he  had 
also  strong  encouragement  from  these  quarters  to  act  as  he 
did.  There  were  the  malcontents,  to  whom  allusion  has  been 
made  more  than  once,  who  claimed  that  the  New  Haven 
restrictions  upon  the  franchise  were  depriving  them  of  some 
cf  the  rights  of  English  subjects  and  who  recognized  no 
lawful  authority  in  the  colonial  government  ;  and  it  is  quite 
certain  that,  doubtless  for  more  statesmanlike  reasons,  Gov- 
ernor Leete  and  others  saw  the  desirability  of  securing  one 
patent  for  the  two  colonies.  It  is  hardly  possible  at  this  time 
to  do  more  than  allude  to  the  facts  of  the  case  and  to  call 
attention  to  the  prominent  part  which  Guilford  men  took  in 
furthering  the  submission  of  the  New  Haven  colonists  to  the 
terms  of  the  royal  charter.  Before  the  charter  came,  Dr. 
Bryan  (or  Bray)  Rossiter  and  his  son  John,  perhaps  en- 
couraged by  the  success  of  their  opposition  to  a  candidate  for 
the  pastorate  here,  had  ventured  to  call  the  civil  authority  of 
the  jurisdiction  into  question.  They  were  prevailed  upon  to 
present  an  apology  and  to  promise  to  submit  to  the  govern- 
ment as  long  as  they  continued  under  it ;  but  they  did  their 
best  to  free  themselves  from  its  authority  without  changing 
their  residence.  No  wonder  is  it  that  the  colony  found  "  a 
great  discouragement  upon  the  spirits  of  those  that  were  now 
in  place  of  magistracy,"  and  that  Mr.  Davenport  and  others, 
who  were  willing  to  risk  everything  rather  than  abandon  the 
fundamental  principle  of  restricting  suffrage  to  church  mem- 
bers, were  alarmed  at  the  claims  which  Connecticut  some- 
what exultantly  made  when  she  exhibited  her  charter. 

Before  the  charter  had  been  published  in  Hartford,  thirty- 
two  inhabitants  of  Southold,  having  notice  that  Long  Island 
came  within  the  patent,  submitted  to  Connecticut ;  and  the 
General  Assembly,  on  the  day  when  the  charter  was  pub- 
lished, received  their  deputy,  and  authorized  the  inhabitants 


i68 

of  Southolcl  to  elect  a  constable,  without  pretending  to  go 
through  the  formality  of  releasing  them  from  their  oath  of 
allegiance  to  New  Haven.  At  the  same  meeting — it  was  on 
the  Qth  of  October,  1662 — we  read  that  "  severall  inhabitants 
of  Guilford  tendring  themselves,  their  persons  and  estates, 
under  the  Government  and  Protection  of  this  Colony,  This 
Court  doth  declare  that  they  doe  accept  and  owne  them  as 
members  of  this  Colony,  and  shal  be  ready  to  affoard  what 
protection  is  necessary.  And  this  Court  doth  advise  the  said 
persons  to  carry  peaceably  and  religiously  in  their  places 
towards  the  rest  of  the  Inhabitants  that  yet  have  not  sub- 
mitted in  like  manner  ;  and  also  to  pay  their  iust  dues  unto 
the  Minister  of  their  Towne,  and  also  all  publique  charges 
due  to  this  day."  Furthermore,  Stamford  and  Greenwich 
were  accepted  under  the  charter  government  and  constables 
were  appointed  for  them,  as  John  Meigs  was  then  or  soon 
after  appointed  for  Guilford.  Towards  the  end  of  December 
Dr.  Rossiter  and  his  son  went  to  Connecticut,  returning  on 
the  next  to  the  last  day  of  the  month  with  "two  of  their  mag- 
istrates, marshall,  and  sundry  others,"*  who  (to  quote  from  the 
records)  "  comeing  into  the  town  at  an  unseasonable  time  of 
night,  their  partie  by  shooting  off  sundry  guns  caused  the 
town  to  be  alarmed  unto  great  disturbance,  and  some  of  them 
giveing  out  threatning  speeches,  which  caused  the  governor 
to  send  away  speedily  to  Branford  and  Newhaven  for  helpe, 
which  caused  both  those  townes  to  be  alarmed  alsoe,  to 
great  disturbance,  the  same  night,  which  caused  sending  of 
men  both  from  New  Haven  and  Branford." 

So  the  controversy  between  the  colonies  began.  There 
could  be  no  question,  except  in  the  minds  of  a  few  enthusi- 
asts, what  the  result  would  be.  On  the  side  of  the  loyal  New 
Haven  men  there  was  the  feeling  that  they  were  wronged, 
showing  itself  sometimes  in  a  sort  of  ineffectual  bluster  and 
sometimes  in  pathetic  though  extended  appeals  for  justice, 
and  there  was  also  the  conviction  that  they  were  contending 
for  the  principles  which  had  lain  at  the  foundation  of  their 
government  from  the  very  first.  On  the  side  of  Connecticut 
was  the  feeling  of  power  and  the  determination  to  assert  it, 


169 

joined,  no  doubt,  with  the  belief  that  it  was  for  the  interest  of 
all  that  her  claims  should  be  acknowledged.  And  there 
seem  to  have  been  many  who,  for  different  reasons,  were  dis- 
satisfied with  the  New  Haven  system,  or  at  least  persuaded 
that  it  was  useless  to  attempt  to  retain  it ;  and  thus  men  like 
Governor  Leete  and  men  like  Dr.  Rossiter  weakened  the 
cause  of  the  colony  in  which  they  lived  and  strengthened  that 
of  the  other  colony.  Still,  the  struggle  might  have  lasted 
longer  than  it  did,  had  it  not  been  for  outside  pressure.  In 
July,  1664,  news  was  brought  to  Boston  that  the  king  had 
made  a  grant  of  the  New  Netherland  to  his  brother  the  Duke 
of  York,  and  that  the  grant  covered  the  whole  of  Long 
Island  and  all  the  main  land  between  the  Connecticut  River 
and  Delaware  Bay,  including  therefore  the  whole  of  New 
Haven  colony  and  a  large  part  of  Connecticut.  New  Haven 
was  obliged  to  choose  between  a  union  with  her  sister  colony 
of  Connecticut  and  submission  to  the  governor  who  repre- 
sented the  Duke  of  York.  She  decided  in  the  only  way 
which  she  could  decide,  and  accepted  her  fate.  The  repre- 
sentatives of  the  chartered  colony  and  the  royal  commission- 
ers first  agreed  that  "the  creeke  or  river  called  Momoronack" 
should  be  the  boundary  between  Connecticut  and  New  York. 
Then,  on  the  thirteenth  day  of  December,  1664,  there  was  a 
meeting  of  the  General  Court  at  New  Haven,  "  together  with 
the  Freemen  of  New  Haven,  Guilford,  Branford,  and  part  of 
Milford,  and  as  many  of  the  inhabitants  as  was  pleased  to 
come"  ;  and  on  the  next  day  "  the  Freemen  and  other  inhab- 
itants of  the  colony" — the  old  distinction  was  practically 
gone — voted,  with  an  apparent  reservation  which  really  meant 
nothing,  to  submit  to  Connecticut.  And  finally,  at  the  election 
in  May,  1665,  Mr.  Leete  and  four  others  who  had  been  mag- 
istrates of  New  Haven  Colony  were  elected  Assistants  of 
Connecticut  Colony,  and  the  union,  to  the  manifest  advantage 
of  all  concerned,  was  permanently  concluded,  the  General 
Assembly  voting  "  that  all  former  actings  that  have  past  by 
the  former  power  at  New  Haven,  so  far  as  they  have  con- 
cerned this  colony  (whilst  they  stood  as  a  distinct  colony), 
though  they  in  their  own  nature  have  seemed  uncomfortable 


I/O 

to  us,  yet  they  are  hereby  buryed  in  perpetuall  obliuion,  never 
to  be  called  to  account."  The  uniop  with  Connecticut  thus 
effected  marks  the  limit  of  the  period  assigned  to  me. 

I  think,  Mr.  President  and  Citizens,  Ladies  and  Gentlemen, 
that  there  is  no  history  which  for  variety  of  interest  and  for 
usefulness  of  example  better  repays  our  study  than  that  of 
our  early  settlements  in  New  England,  "the  book  of  the 
generations"  of  those  who  laid  here  the  foundations  for  great 
commonwealths  and  a  great  nation.  As  I  have  traced  before 
you  rapidly  the  outlines  of  the  history  of  the  settlement  of 
this  ancient  town,  of  the  years  of  its  independence  and  of 
those  during  which  it  was  united  with  other  towns  in  the 
colony  of  southwestern  New  England,  I  have  attempted  to 
show  how  the  spirit  of  sturdy  independence  at  all  times  ruled 
here,  in  union  with  that  spirit  of  concession  and  consideration 
of  circumstances  which  is  so  essential  a  part  of  true  wisdom 
and  true  patriotism.  We  do  not  fail  in  respect  for  our  an- 
cestors when  we  confess  that  they  made  mistakes  and  that 
their  actions  sometimes  tended  to  results  at  variance  with 
their  professed  intentions  ;  but  we  do  fail  to  give  them  the 
reverence  which  is  their  just  due,  if  we  neglect  to  acknow- 
ledge the  loftiness  and  purity  of  their  motives  and  to  confess 
that  in  the  day  of  small  things  they  did  a  work  the  benefit  of 
which  has  accrued  to  all  the  generations  which  have  come 
after  them.  "  The  Lord  hath  wrought  great  glory  by  them, 
through  His  great  power  from  the  beginning.  There  be  of 
them  that  have  left  a  name  behind  them,  that  their  praises 
might  be  reported.  And  some  there  be  which  have  no  me- 
morial. But  with  their  seed  shall  continually  remain  a  good 
inheritance,  and  their  children  are  within  the  covenant.  The 
people  will  tell  of  their  wisdom,  and  the  congregation  will 
show  forth  their  praise." 


THE  POLITICAL,  MILITARY,  AND  SOCIAL 
HISTORY  OF  GUILFORD 


FROM 

1665  TO  1861. 

BY 

BERNARD  C.   STEINER. 


[Mr.   Steiner,   a  grandson  of  Hon    R.    D.   Smyth,   is  a  descendant  of 
William  Seward,   1654  ] 


The  struggle  for  separate  existence  was  now  over  and  the 
jurisdiction  of  New  Haven  was  no  more.  With  its  fall, 
perished  the  cherished  hopes  of  many  of  the  inhabitants. 
They  had  left  England  to  establish  a  government  in  which 
they  might  worship  in  their  own  way,  and  which,  therefore, 
should  be  free  from  all  worldly  pollution.  The  settlers  of 
Guilford,  originally  independent,  had  united  with  New  Haven, 
because,  by  so  doing,  the  advantages  of  union  would  follow, 
and  furthermore,  New  Haven  was  built  on  the  same  founda- 
tion. But  to  lose  the  old  existence  and  become  an  integral 
part  of  lax  and  grasping  Connecticut  was  a  sore  blow  to  the 
good  people  of  the  town.  Then  too,  the  course  of  Bryan 
Rossiter,  in  endeavoring  to  drag  Guilford  into  Connecticut, 
had  doubtless  embittered  their  feeling.  Small  wonder  is  it, 
that  influential  men,  like  the  Kitchels,  left  to  join  Abraham 
Pierson  and  his  Branford  followers,  in  establishing  a  new  set- 
tlement where  the  original  severity  of  manners  might  be 
maintained.* 

*  They  founded  Newark,  New  Jersey,  a  town  which,  though  it  has  far  outgrown  its  parents 
still  proudly  claims  its  "  splendid  heritage  "  from  "  the  men  and  women  from  Guilford  and 
other  neighboring  towns." 


1/2 

The  majority,  however,  led  by  the  wise  and  moderate  Wil- 
liam Leete,  accepted  the  situation  and  tried  to  make  the  best 
of  it.  So,  in  May  of  1665,  Mr.  Sherman  and  Mr.  John  Allyn 
went  from  Hartford  to  Guilford  and  administered  the  free- 
man's oath  to  all  formerly  freemen  and  to  as  many  others  as 
were  qualified,  and  in  the  same  month  Connecticut  established 
a  court  at  the  town. 

Back  came  Bryan  Rossiter  from  Killingworth,  which  he 
and  others  of  his  party  had  settled  the  year  before,  to  end  his 
troublous  life  in  Guilford,  though  for  some  time  his  contro- 
versy with  the  town  dragged  on.  Other  settlers  came  gradu- 
ally from  one  place  and  another  and  the  town  slowly  grew. 

In  its  internal  affairs  it  kept  on  in  the  regular  tenor  of  its 
way.  Every  little  while  was  held  the  town  meeting,  sum- 
moned for  years  yet  by  beat  of  drum,  at  which  assembled  the 
farmers  from  the  different  sections,  warned  by  the  men  so  ap- 
pointed. 

The  great  concern  at  first,  and  for  a  long  time,  was  the 
allotment  of  land.  Men  were  appointed  to  size  the  meadows 
at  Hammonassett,  to  consider  some  way  of  laying  out  another 
division  of  upland  and  meadow,  to  fence  the  ox-pasture  at 
Sachem's  Head,  and  to  mend  the  young  cattle  fence  at  East 
River.  A  third  division  of  land  was  made  in  1667,  and  in 
1685  the  Town  obtained  a  patent  for  its  lands  from  the  legis- 
lature. The  next  year  the  total  area  of  the  town  was  com- 
pleted by  the  purchase  of  North  Guilford  from  the  Indian 
Nausup,  for  £16  i2s.  A  division  of  this  land  was  ordered  in 
1691  ;  but  apparently  did  not  exhaust  all  that  was  unoccu- 
pied ;  so  later  there  was  a  fifth,  sixth,  and  seventh  division. 
Indeed,  that  august  body,  the  Proprietors  of  the  Commons 
and  Undivided  Lands,  did  not  cease  to  hold  meetings  and 
grant  tracts  of  land  until  1826,  and  the  last  entry  in  their 
books  is  dated  as  late  as  1831. 

A  prohibition  was  early  laid  on  the  exportation  of  cedar 
from  the  town,  and  this  was  later  extended  to  other  kinds  of 
wood. 

Every  few  years  a  committee  was  appointed  to  adjust  the 
boundaries  of  the  town,  and  permission  was  given,  from  time 


173 

to  time,  to  "  drown  and  kill  "  a  swamp  ;  though  the  right  was 
afterwards  taken  by  the  Governor's  Council.  Falcon  Island, 
after  passing  through  the  hands  of  Leetes,  Baldwins,  Islops 
and  Stones,  was  sold  for  $325  to  the  United  States,  in  1801. 
On  it  a  lighthouse  has  been  erected,  which,  since  that  time, 
has  warned  the  mariners  of  danger. 

But  town  meetings  had  other  functions  which,  though  often 
uninteresting  to-day,  were  important  in  their  time  and  fill 
many  pages  of  the  old  records. 

Roads  and  bridges  were  ordered  there,  one  highway  being 
petitioned  for  in  1720,  "  since  the  neigboring  farmers  which 
belong  to  the  town  of  Killingworth  desire  that  there  may  be  a 
way  there  that,  So  with  Conveniency,  they  may  enjoy  Lec- 
tures and  other  neighborly  Converse  in  Guilford." 

Wild  animals,  in  the  unsettled  state  of  the  country,  gave 
much  trouble,  and  so  bounties  are  offered,  time  and  again,  for 
foxes,  wolves  and  wildcats,  and  in  1683-4,  "  poyson  was  to 
be  gotten  of  Rev.  Mr.  Eliot,  with  his  directions  for  the  improv- 
ing of  it  for  the  poysoning  of  vveaselses."  Cattle  were  also 
troublesome,  pounds  are  constantly  being  established,  and 
penalties  for  their  going  at  large  are  frequently  enacted. 
Swine,  it  is  true,  might,  "  if  well  yoked  and  ringed,"  go  abroad; 
but  are  to  be  declared  unruly  and  impounded  if  they  break 
through  "  tollerable "  fences.  In  1702,  the  East  farmers  "are 
allowed  to  put  their  rams  in  their  sequestered  land "  and 
sheep,  geese,  cattle,  horse-kind,  and  mules  are  regulated  at 
various  times.  From  1817  onward,  we  find  frequent  enact- 
ments in  prohibition  of  the  using  of  seines  in  Lake  Quone- 
paug  and  West  Pond,  and  the  more  important  interests  in 
oysters  begin  to  find  protection  in  the  year  1753.  Once 
begun  to  be  legislated  upon,  this  industry  has  been  a  source 
of  continual  anxiety.  In  1824,  round  clams  also  received 
attention  from  the  town,  and  three  years  later,  "  muscles  and 
other  clams"  were  added  ;  while,  after  a  year  more,  provision 
was  made  that  any  one  might  obtain  private  property  in  oyster 
beds  by  laying  down  the  shell-fish  under  direction  of  the 
selectmen.  The  town  smith's  tools,  which  were  of  so  great 
value  at  first,later  lost  their  importance  and  were  sold  in  1693. 


174 

At  town  meeting,  furthermore,  were  read  the  laws  enacted 
at  the  last  session  of  the  Legislature  ;  this  being  the  regular 
way  of  their  publication. 

In  1688,  the  tcwn  empowered  the  townsmen  "to  look  after 
the  town's  bounds  and  to  defend  the  town's  rights  against  any 
that  shall  infringe  them,"  and  then  the  records  are  blank  for 
a  year.  These  were  the  gloomy  times  of  Sir  Edmund  An- 
dross  ;  but  the  plucky  little  town  meant  its  daring  words. 
Hearing  that  the  charter  was  concealed  at  Mr.  Andrew  Leete's 
in  Guilford,  commissioners  were  sent  down  from  Hartford  to 
search  for  it.  They  lodged  for  the  night  at  the  southeast 
corner  of  the  Green,  intending  to  prosecute  their  search  the 
next  day.  But  William  Seward,  the  captain  of  the  train  band, 
heard  of  their  arrival,  and  marshaling  his  company  before 
their  windows,  aroused  them.  With  drawn  sword,  he  informed 
the  delegates  that  Guilford  was  no  place  for  them  and  that  he 
was  there  to  escort  them  from  the  town.  Against  their  will 
they  yielded  and  were  soon  outside  of  Guilford,  which  suffered 
no  more  from  them. 

Town  meetings  were  not  always  concerned  with  local 
affairs.  Sometimes  they  stepped  into  the  field  of  state  or 
national  politics.  In  1773  the  town  instructed  its  representa- 
tives at  Hartford  on  the  Wyoming  matter,  as  absolutely  as 
any  southern  constituency  in  ante-bellum  days  :  "Where- 
fore, as  this  controversy  will  bring  this  colony  under  a  heavy 
load  of  expense,  without  the  most  distant  prospect  of  success 
and,  if  obtained,  would  be  no  real  advantage  to  this  colony,  it 
is  our  undoubted  right  and  we  hereby  instruct  you  to  use  your 
utmost  endeavors  and  influence  to  stop  all  further  proceed- 
ings." Here  the  town  was  right,  but  the  colony  at  large, 
unluckily,  did  not  agree  with  it.  In  the  next  spring  dele- 
gates were  sent  to  a  convention  at  Middletown  to  draw  up  a 
protest  to  the  assembly  and,  a  month  later,  their  report  was 
accepted.  Delegates  were  also  sent  to  another  convention  in 
1783  to  arrange  measures  about  commutation,  but  were  dis- 
continued a  few  months  later. 

In  1788  General  Andrew  Ward  and  John  Eliot  were  sent 
to  the  convention  for  ratifying  the  United  States  Constitution 


175 

and,  it  is  to  be  regretted,  voted  no.  In  1794,  the  town  voted 
disapproval  of  the  sale  of  western  lands,  the  proceeds  from 
which  later  formed  the  school  fund,  and  also  that  it  would  use 
its  influence  to  postpone  the  same. 

'In  the  fall  of  1808  the  town  endorsed  the  protest  of  New 
Haven  against  the  embargo  and,  the  next  February,  a  com- 
mittee of  eleven  was  appointed  "  to  prepare  resolutions  on  the 
alarming  state  of  the  country."  They  declared  that  : 

WHEREAS,  it  is  the  Indisputable  duty  of  a  free  people  to 
keep  a  vigilant  and  watchful  eye  upon  their  rulers  and,  view- 
ing the  distress  and  misery  brought  upon  all  classes  of  the 
citizens  by  the  general  government ; 

Resolved,  That  we  view  it  to  be  the  duty  of  all  citizens  to 
submit  to  the  laws,  though  oppressive  and  unconstitutional, 
rather  than  resort  to  violence,  till  constitutional  means  of 
redress  are  tried  and,  as  we  view  the  embargo  for  an  unlimited 
time  an  infringement  upon  the  constitutional  compact  entered 
into  by  the  several  states,  as  it  encroaches  on  the  state 
sovereignties ; 

Resolved,  That  we  will  unite  with  the  well  disposed  of  our 
fellow-citizens,  in  a  constitutional  way,  to  obtain  a  speedy 
redress  of  our  grievances." 

After  this  elevated  language,  it  is  rather  a  fall  to  find  the 
next  intervention  in  public  affairs  a  petition  to  the  Legis- 
lature, in  1836,  for  a  standard  measure  of  potatoes  and 
turnips. 

In  1818  William  Todd  and  Nathaniel  Griffing  were  sent  as 
delegates  to  the  State  Constitutional  Convention,  but  the 
staunch,  conservative  town  rejected  the  fruit  of  their  labors 
by  a  vote  of  159  to  255. 

In  the  olden  days  most  strange  and  wondrous  officers  were 
chosen  at  town  meetings.  Brandmarkers  of  horses,  keepers 
of  ordinary,  men  to  lay  out  land,  townsmen,  mill  committee, 
surveyors  of  highways,  men  to  keep  boys  in  order  during 
church, — these  come  early  ;  packers  of  beef  and  pork,  listers, 
poundkeepers,  fence  viewers,  hay  wards,  leather  sealers,  all 
come  later,  but  before  1700.  In  the  eighteenth  century  the  list, 
was  increased  by  "  cuttors  of  staves,"  hog  reeves,  tything  men, 
''an  inspector  and  brander  of  pot  and  pearl  ashes  and  of  fish, 
flour  and  tobacco"  (all  one  officer),  sealers  of  Avordupois  and 


Troy  weights,  etc.,  till  it  seems  as  if  every  man  must  have 
held  .one  office  at  least. 

Taxes  were  generally  low  and  could  be  paid  in  grain,  in 
early  days,  and  flax  was  used  for  payment  till  after  the  colony 
had  become  a  state. 

In  1837  the  town  received  its  share  of  the  Town  Deposit 
Fund,  which  amounted  to  $6,020,-  and  yielded  annually  an 
income  of  $360,  one-half  of  which  went  for  schools,  the  other 
half  for  the  ordinary  expenses  of  the  town. 

The  town  mill  was  a  source  of  great  discussion,  much  rev- 
enue, and  frequent  legislation.  The  saw-mill  was  first  built 
in  1722. 

At  various  times  from  1753  to  1810,  we  find  record  of  the 
receipt  of  new  law  books,  which  are  distributed  to  the  several 
Societies. 

These  town  meetings  were  held  in  the  meeting  house,  till 
the  time  of  the  Revolution.  In  1773,  a  committee  was  ap- 
pointed "  to  examine  into  the  expediency  and  usefulness  of 
building  a  town-house;"  but  nothing  was  done  by  the  town 
for  two  years,  as  some  objected  to  the  cost,  until  private  en- 
terprise and  public  spirit  took  the  initiative.  On  April  10, 
1775,  the  town  voted  "to  take  the  house  which  hath  beeri 
begun  and  partly  finished  by  a  number  of  subscribers  and  to 
complete  it."  The  offer  of  the  subscribers  stated  that  they 
had  expended  ^90  and  offered  "  the  building  as  a  free  dona- 
tion to  the  town,  if  it  would  finish  it,"  to  be  used  for  all  public 
meetings.  This  is  the  old  house,  where  the  deliberations  of 
the  town  meeting  are  held  to-day;  it  was  not  finished  for 
some  years.  In  1780,  Captain  Dan  Collins  was  directed  "  to 
procure  a  lock  for  its  door";  shutters  were  added  in  1786, 
and  not  till  1793,  did  the  town  vote  to  complete  it.  In  1801, 
the  selectmen  were  authorized  to  lease  the  lower  part  for  five 
years  and  again,  after  that  period,  for  a  "  Store  of  dry  and 
West  India  goods." 

In  1812,  it  was  voted  "that  the  upper  part  of  the  house 
should  be  rearranged,"  so  as  to  hold  more,  and,  eight  years 
later,  it  was  ordered  to  be  moved  from  the  Green  to  its  pres- 
ent site.  Baptist  and  Methodist  churches  met  there  for  a 


177 

time.  In  1852,  an  abortive  attempt  was  made  for  a  new  hall, 
and,  equally  without  result,  was  the  appointment  of  a  com- 
mittee, four  years  later,  to  try  to  alter  it,  so  as  to  keep  the 
ground. 

The  old  church,  built  on  the  Green  in  the  early  part  of  the 
eighteenth  century,  was  a  splendid  structure.  It  had  the 
first  spire  in  the  State,  and  its  clock,  the  oldest  in  Connecti- 
cut, if  not  in  New  England,  was  "rectified  and  kept  in  order" 
for  many  years  by  Ebenezer  Parmelee,  who  was  "  freed  from 
serving  in  town  offices  "  therefor. 

In  1724,  the  surplus  from  the  town  mill  furnished  £$$  for 
a  bell  for  Guilford,  £8  for  one  for  Madison,  and  £•$  for  one 
for  North  Guilford. 

Indeed,  Guilford  was  a  place  of  some  importance.  It  was 
one  of  the  eight  ports  of  entry  established  by  the  legislature 
in  1703,  at  which  time  Josiah  Rossiter  was  made  Naval 
Officer.  In  1719  it  was  made  the  seat  of  a  probate  district, 
embracing  Guilford,  Durham,  Saybrook,  Killingworth  and 
Branford,  and  futile  attempts  were  made,  at  five  different 
times,  to  make  Guilford  County  from  those  towns.  In  every 
case,  the  bill  passed  the  lower  house,  but  failed  in  the  upper. 
In  1739,  the  town  voted  ;£ioo  extra  "  for  gaol  and  court 
house,"  if  such  county  should  be  formed.  But,  though  the 
town  failed  to  become  a  Northern  Guilford  Court  House,  it 
did  obtain  one  of  the  earliest  boroughs  in  the  State  in  1815. 

As  the  town  grew  the  farmers  at  the  East  End  became 
desirous  to  attend  worship  and  pay  ministers'  rates  at  Killing- 
worth,  as  it  was  five  miles  nearer  than  Guilford,  but  no  defi- 
nite steps  were  taken  till  1695,  when  the  Legislature  allowed 
their  request.  Guilford  did  not  readily  accede  to  this  and,  five 
years  later,  voted  "to  collect  ministers'  rates  from  all  the  in- 
habitants." In  1 699  "the  neighbour  farmers  petition  the  town 
to  be  allowed  to  become  a  village "  and  were  cuttingly 
answered  that  the  town  would  consider  it  if  the  East  End 
people  would  pay  their  arrears  of  taxes.  However,  in  the  same 
month,  they  voted  them  a  grain  mill,  as  though  a  palliative. 

In  1703  their  request,  again  preferred,  was  granted  and 
ratified  by  the  Legislature,  while,  two  years  later,  the  town 


I78 

"  frees  the  people  of  the  East  Society  from  town  charges,  they 
obliging  themselves  to  bear  all  the  charges  that  may  arise 
among  themselves  for  bulls  and  bridges  and  wolves  and  all 
other  charges,"  and,  after  two  years  more,  somewhat  snap- 
pishly, the  town  decides  it  will  "  pass  no  more  votes  concern- 
ing the  East  Society."  In  October,  1707,  the  society  is 
formally  incorporated  and,  three  years  thereafter,  the  name 
of  East  Guilford  is  first  mentioned. 

In  1783  a  petition  was  preferred  to  make  it  a  separate  town 
and  was  granted  by  the  town,  but  the  matter  went  no  further, 
and  not  till  1823  was  the  effort  renewed.  In  1824  Guilford 
appointed  a  committee  "  to  run  the  boundary  between  it  and 
the  new  town  to  the  eastward  and  to  see  about  the  advisability 
of  Guilford's  being  transferred  to  Middlesex  County,  if  it  could 
thus  become  a  half  shire  town."  The  latter  part  was  unsuc- 
cessful, but  the  result  of  the  former  part  was  the  making  of 
the  town  of  Madison  in  May,  1826. 

North  Guilford  was  first  called  Cohabit,  because  the  early 
settlers,  about  1705,  going  up  on  Monday  and  returning  home 
on  Saturday,  lived  together  while  there.  In  February,  1720, 
"  bounds  were  given  it  for  a  society,"  which  were  ratified  by 
the  Legislature  and,  in  1727,  it  was  named  North  Guilford  by 
an  act.  It  has  ever  been  noted  for  the  number  of  educated 
men  coming  from  it. 

In  1733  the  farmers  at  Black  Rock  were  granted  permission 
to  build  a  pound  and  North  Madison  began  to  be  settled  only 
a  few  years  before  that  date.  In  1749  it  was  allowed  a  min- 
ister for  the  three  winter  months. 

Bezaleel  Bristol  was  one  of  its  principal  settlers  and  from 
him  the  society  was  called  North  Bristol,  at  its  incorporation 
in  1753. 

The  Guilford  Green,  now  so  beautiful,  was  in  the  last  cen- 
tury an  unenclosed  field,  partly  occupied  by  buildings,  yet  it 
received  some  care,  for  enactments  were  made  forbidding 
removal  of  gravel  therefrom  and  authorizing  the  leveling  of  it. 

Several  quaint  and  sensible  laws  were  made  as  to  shade 
trees,  one  of  which  reads :  "  Whereas  proper  and  convenient 
shades  in  the  highways  are  found  by  experience  to  be  of  public 


1/9 

benefit  and  advantage,  therefore,  for  promoting  the  same,  the 
selectmen  are  to  mark  them  with  a  G  and  then  there  is  to  be 
a  penalty  following  their  being  cut  down." 

Guilford  has  never  been  a  wealthy  town,  yet  it  has  ever  had 
but  few  paupers.  Consequently  there  are  but  few  items  as  to 
care  of  the  poor  in  the  old  records. 

In  1699  liberty  was  granted  to  set  a  small  house  in  the 
Green  for  an  almshouse,  but  it  doesn't  seem  to  have  been  done, 
and  not  till  1790  was  an  attempt  again  made  to  have  one. 
That  attempt  was  also  an  unsuccessful  one,  and,  as  late  as 
1810,  the  vote  was  passed  "that  the  selectmen  should  let  all 
such  persons  who  are  wholly  on  the  town  for  Maintenance 
and  support,  at  public  vendue,  quarterly,  to  whomever  shall 
undertake  to  keep  them  the  cheapest."  In  1813  it  was  at  last 
voted  to  build  a  poor  house,  but  in  dividing  prop'erty  when  the 
town  divided,  that  went  to  Madison,  and  not  till  1849  did 
Guilford  have  another. 

The  health  of  the  village  has  always  been  good.  In  1751 
an  awful  epidemic  in  Madison  carried  off  forty-five.  Among 
them  was  Deacon  Timothy  Meigs,  on  whom  a  lamentation  in 
fifty  stanzas  was  written.  Two  will  suffice: 

"  Until  at  last,  death  seized  fast 

Our  well  beloved  Deacon, 
Whose  sickness  strong,  first  seized  upon 
Him,  when  he  was  at  meeting. 

A  heavy  Stroke  that  from  us  took 

This  good  and  useful  Man, 
How  deep  the  wound,  how  sad  the  sound, 

The  Lovly  Miegs  is  gone." 

Smallpox  was  much  dreaded  and  pesthouses  were  several 
times  ordered.  In  1795,  presumably  to  provide  nurses,  it  was 
enacted  that  "if  small-Pox  break  out,  the  families  of  Caleb 
Dudley  and  Nathaniel  Dudley  may  take  the  small-Pox,  by  way 
of  inoculation,  under  the  direction  of  the  selectmen.  A  new 
protection  appears  in  1826,  when  Dr.  Silvanus  Fancher  is 
granted  $100  to  vaccinate  the  inhabitants  with  the  kinepox. 
When  people  did  die  they  were  carried  on  biers,  within  the 


i8o 

memory  of  some  now  living,  to  the  old  burying  ground  on  the 
Green.  In  Madison  the  burying  yard  at  Hammonassett  was  laid 
out  at  a  very  early  date  and  the  one  near  the  center  about  1690. 

In  1691  the  town  chose  Mr.  Joseph  Dudley  "for  the 
making  of  coffins  on  all  occasions  of  death,"  and  a  few  years 
later  "John  Tustin  is  chosen  to  dig  graves  and  allowed  four 
shillings  for  a  grown  person  and  three  shillings  for  lesser  per- 
sons," he  finding  his  own  tools. 

In  1731  the  town  voted  "that  the  palls  or  cloaths  to  cover 
the  Coffins  of  ye  Dead,  when  carried  to  their  graves,  shall  be 
purchased  at  town  charge  and  paid  for  out  of  the  ernings  of 
the  mill,  and  Each  of  the  three  societies  shall  have  the  bene- 
fit of  one  Cloath."  The  cemeteries  were  at  first  unfenced  ; 
Hammonassett,  in  1758,  being  the  first  to  be  enclosed,  and 
that  "because  its  Herbage  being  worth  something,"  it  might 
be  leased  for  pasturage. 

Madison  Cemetery  was  fenced  in  1789  and  the  Guilford  one 
not  till  the  early  years  of  this  century. 

Manufactures,  except  for  home  use,  were  of  slow  growth. 
Shoes  were  made  to  a  large  extent  and  sent  over  the  country. 
Iron  works  at  Still  Water  Brook  in  North  Madison  were 
operated  in  the  last  century.  Madison  long  had  a  large  coast- 
ing trade  in  wood,  and  vessels  have  continually  been  con- 
structed there. 

The  schools  of  Guilford  have  been  good  from  the  very  first. 
In  1674  the  town  defined  the  duties  of  its  school  teacher  as 
"to  instruct  all  sorts  and  that  from  their  ABC,  and  to  be 
helpful  in  preaching  when  required."  As  the  town  spread, 
other  schools  were  established  in  Madison,  1688,  in  Nut 
Plains,  1714,  in  East  River,  1716,  and  Moose  Hill,  1748. 

In  1854  was  built  the  "Guilford  Institute,"  given  by  Mrs. 
Sarah  Griffing.  It  has  duly  cared  for  the  interests  of  higher 
education  from  that  time,  fitting  youth  for  college  or  the 
world. 

The  people  of  Guilford  have  always  been  well  educated, 
and  the  Triennial  Catalogue  of  Yale  University  counts  over 
one  hundred  and  sixty  names  of  Guilford  men  ;  while  part  of 
the  college  was  situated  in  the  old  town,  in  its  early  years, 


when  the  tutors,  John  Hart  of  Madison  and  Samuel  Johnson 
of  Guilford,  lived  at  home  and  had  their  classes  with  them. 

Lee's  academy  opened  in  Madison  in  1821,  which  continued 
many  years  till  its  place  was  filled  by  another,  the  Hand 
Academy,  the  gift  of  a  native  of  the  town.  As  the  sons  of 
Guilford  grew  to  manhood  they  went  to  settle  new  territory 
"on  every  side.  The  first  inhabitants  of  Durham  were  Guil- 
ford men.  They  went  ever  to  the  frontier,  whether  it  were 
Litchfield  County,  Vermont,  Central  New  York,  Ohio,  or 
California.  Everywhere  they  carried  with  them  the  influ- 
ences for  good  which  they  had  imbibed  in  their  early  home. 

As  some  went,  others  came.  After  the  first  generation  had 
almost  passed  away,  came  John  Hodgkin  from  Essex,  Eng- 
land, Thomas  Griswold  from  Wethersfield,  Benjamin  Hand 
from  Long  Island,  Andrew  Ward  from  Stamford,  Comfort 
Starr  from  Middletown,  and  Ephraim  Darwin,  said  to  have 
been  a  relative  of  the  great  naturalist.  Peter  and  George 
Coan,  leaving  Worms,  Germany,  in  1730,  drifted  here,  as 
Charles  Caldwell  from  Evain,  Scotland,  had  done  twenty 
years  earlier  ;  and  Thomas  Burgis,  impressed  in  England  on 
a  man-of-war  and  deserting  at  Boston,  came  later.  The 
Landons  and  Lopers  came  from  Long  Island  in  the  middle  of 
the  Eighteenth  century,  the  latter  family  claiming  descent 
from  a  Spanish  Lopez. 

When  the  Acadians  were  torn  from  their  native  land,  tradi- 
tion has  it  that  some  of  them  were  left  at  Guilford  by  a 
British  vessel  conveying  them,  and  it  is  certain  that  appro- 
priations were  made  by  the  town  for  the  French  family  and 
for  the  old  Frenchman,  shortly  thereafter.  After  the  massa- 
cres in  St.  Domingo,  several  families  of  the  refugees  settled 
for  a  time  at  Guilford.  One  of  these,  the  Loiselles,  is  said  to 
have  occupied  the  old  Burgess  house  and  to  have  painted  it 
black,  when  news  came  of  the  guillotining  of  Louis  XVI. 

Of  the  men  of  the  town,  Governor  William  Leete,  calm, 
resolute,  wary,  moderate,  and  sagacious,  who  is  said  to  have 
hid  the  regicides,  claims  first  place. 

His  son  Andrew  Leete,  who,  tradition  saith,  kept  the 
charter  in  his  house  here  during  much  of  Andross's  suprem- 


182 

acy,  was  also   prominent  in   the  colony,  being  an   assistant 
many  years. 

Abraham  Fowler  and  Josiah  Rossiter  were  also  honored 
with  a  seat  in  the  colonial  upper  house. 

In  the  last  century  Col.  Samuel  Hill,  whose  beautiful  hand- 
writing delights  all  who  read  the  old  town  records,  was  so 
honored  by  his  fellow  townsmen  with  the  offices  in  their  gift, 
that  an  old  story  is  told  that  at  freeman's  meeting,  after  the 
Moderator  had  been  chosen,  he  would  rise  and  say  :  "  This 
meeting  is  called  to  elect  Col.  Sam  Hill  and  some  one  to  go 
with  him  to  the  General  court."  But  time  would  fail  me  to 
tell  of  all  ;  of  James  Hooker,  first  Judge  of  Probate,  Col. 
Timothy  Stone,  Gen.  Andrew  Ward,  and  his  father,  the 
Colonel  of  the  same  name,  Gen.  Augustus  Collins,  Squire 
William  Todd,  Nathaniel  Griffing,  Joel  Tuttle,  Judge  Edward 
R.  Landon,  and  others  I  cannot  even  name.  Of  those  who 
left  Guilforcl  for  other  parts  of  the  country  you  will  be  told 
this  afternoon.  But  the  name  of  one  Guilford  man  cannot  be 
passed  in  silence.  Coming  here  in  1831,  he  became  as  de- 
voted to  his  adopted  residence  as  the  most  faithful  of  her  sons; 
he  did  more  for  Guilford  history  than  any  other  man,  living 
or  dead,  and  dying,  left  behind  him  the  reputation  of  "  a  pro- 
found scholar,  an  upright  lawyer,  and  a  faithful  Christian,"  the 
Guilford  antiquary,  Ralph  Dunning  Smyth.  Without  his 
life-long  labor  of  love  this  address  could  not  have  been  written, 
and  many  dark  places  in  the  town's  history  would  have 
remained  forever  obscure. 

The  people  were  riot  warlike,  yet  they  never  disregarded, 
the  call  to  arms.  On  June  i,  1665,  William  Seward  was 
chosen  "Capitaine  of  the  Guard  for  the  year  ensuing  and  had 
liberty  to  choose  his  men."  From  that  day  to  this  rarely  has 
the  town  lacked  a  military  company.  The  company  offices 
were  filled  by  the  election  of  George  Bartlett,  lieutenant;  and 
Samuel  Kitchel,  ensign;  and,  at  that  time,  the  town  stock  of 
ammunition  was  140  pounds  of  powder  and  23$  pounds  of 
lead,  which  the  colony  records  declare  to  be  not  "  compleat." 

The  non-commissioned  officers  were  chosen  by  the  soldiers, 
the  commissioned  ones  by  .town  meeting,  and  later  by  the 


183 

soldiers  subject  to  confirmation  by  the  General  Assembly.  Of 
these  militia  offices  men  were  so  proud  as  to  put  a  record  of 
them  on  their  tombstones. 

In  1672  they  procured  a  man  from  Hartford  "to  mend  the 
town's  arms,"  which  were  soon  to  find  a  use,  for  only  a  few 
years  later  broke  out  King  Phillip's  war. 

Though  Guilford  did  not  suffer  in  this  war,  there  was  great 
fear.  Two  garrisons  were  ordered  and  from  fourteen  years 
old  all  were  pressed  to  work  on  fortifications.  The  town 
generously  voted  "  that  all  damage  to  houseing  by  enemies 
shall  be  born  and  made  good  by  the  towne  in  generall "  ;  sent 
men  to  fight  under  Major  Robert  Treat  and  Mr.  John  Talcott ; 
and  voted  its  soldiers  after  the  war  a  recompense  "of  tenn  acres 
of  land,"  thus  anticipating  the  policy  of  the  United  States. 

The  war  of  William  and  Mary,  in  1690,  made  the  town  vote 
"to  have  a  fortification  about  Mr.  Eliot's  house"  and  that 
"  the  great  guns  be  set  up  on  carriages  and  fitted  for  service." 
The  town  early  developed  that  predilection  for  artillery,which 
it  has  retained  to  this  day,  and,  in  1697,  refused  to  give  up  its 
cannon  to  two  representatives  of  Connecticut  who  wished  to 
transport  them  to  New  London,  "  as  they  wanted  them  for 
their  own  defense  against  the  common  enemy."  These  guns 
were  finally  sold  in  1739. 

For  keeping  the  town  ammunition  Andrew  Ward  received 
five  shillings  a  year  in  1703,  and  four  years  later  the  select- 
men were  to  sell  town  arms  and,  if  need  be,  to  procure 
ammunition.  This  town  stock  of  ammunition  was  later  kept  in 
the  loft  of  the  meeting-house  and,  in  1744,  the  selectmen  were 
ordered  to  build  a  house  for  it,  which  was  not  sold  till  1813. 

As  the  town  grew  other  train  bands  were  formed.  In  1705 
East  Guilford  had  one,  in  1708  the  one  in  the  center  was 
divided,  and  in  1727  one  was  established  in  North  Guilford. 

In  1705  a  watch  of  three  persons  nightly  was  set  for  a 
month,  in  consequence  of  some  alarm. 

In  1745  Col.  Andrew  Ward  of  Guilford  commanded  a  com- 
pany at  Louisburg,  and  in  the  expedition  at  Fort  William 
Henry  two  companies  of  Guilford  men  participated  under 
Oliver  Dudley  and  Nathaniel  Johnson. 


1 84 

General  Ward  and  Colonel  Ichabod  Scranton  also  com- 
manded companies  of  Guilford  men  in  the  Second  French 
war,  but  the  only  Guilforder  whose  individual  exploits  have 
come  clown  to  us  is  the  Indian  Picket,  who,  at  the  battle  of 
Lake  George,  found  Baron  Dieskau,  the  French  general, 
wounded  and  carried  him,  a  prisoner,  within  the  English  lines. 
Although  thus  made  a  prisoner  the  Baron  gave  his  purse  to 
his  captor  in  gratitude  for  having  saved  his  life. 

The  peace  of  Guilford  itself  remained  unbroken  from  the 
death  of  the  Pequot  Chief,  who  gave  Sachem's  Head  its  name, 
till  the  Revolution.  In  that  conflict  Guilford  took  a  place, 
honorable  for  patriotism  and  remarkable  for  lack  of  bitterness 
towards  the  Loyalists. 

In  December,  1774,  the  town,  "at  a  full  special  meeting," 
voted,  in  grand  words,  "  that  sensible  that,  in  the  present  crit- 
ical times,  union  is  of  the  greatest  importance  it  will  accede  to 
the  American  Association  and  endorse  the  acts  of  Continental 
Congress." 

They  further  appointed  a  committee  of  correspondence, 
which  was  also  to  receive  donations  for  the  poor  of  Boston, 
and  in  the  next  spring  sent  forty-five  men  under  Col.  Noah 
Fowler  and  twenty-three  more  under  Ensign  Jehiel  Meigs 
(who  was  too  soon  to  die  of  privation  in  the  field),  at  the 
alarm  of  Lexington,  to  fight  at  Bunker  Hill. 

The  Congress  of  New  York  came  to  Guilford  for  aid,  after 
Long  Island  had  been  lost,  and  so  the  good  sloop  Polly  took 
across  the  sound  to  Connecticut  "  five  loads  of  horses,  cattle, 
sheep,  hogs,  people,  and  household  goods." 

General  Ward  led  a  brigade  of  Connecticut  troops  to  the 
Continental  army,  and,  in  the  dismal  winter  of  Valley  Forge, 
induced  them  to  dig  the  trenches  which  the  haughty  South 
Carolinians  disdained  to  do,  and  finally  led  them  home, 
starving,  to  their  starving  families,  long  after  their  term  of 
service  had  expired. 

On  October  20,  1776,  a  watch  of  twenty-four  men  was  set 
nightly,  scarcely  to  be  given  up  during  the  whole  period  of 
the  war,  and  maintained  with  but  little  aid  from  the  State, 
though  the  long  stretch  of  seaboard  in  the  town  exceeded  that 
of  almost  any  other  on  the  coast. 


i85 

Not  alone  in  the  field  was  the  town  active.  Committees  of 
inspection,  to  provide  for  soldiers'  families  and  to  inspect  pro- 
visions, were  appointed. 

A  bounty  of  £10  was  offered  in  1777  for  every  soldier  en- 
listing "for  three  years  or  the  war,"  and  a  tax  of  6  pence  in 
the  pound  was  laid  to  pay , this. 

Articles  were  to  be  sold  according  to  prices  fixed  by  Gen- 
eral Assembly,  and  all  refusing  so  to  do  "  were  to  be  deemed 
enemies  to  their  country  and  treated  accordingly,"  One  of 
the  town's  great  guns  was  sent  to  East  Guilford  and  signals 
were  arranged  to  show  from  what  quarter  the  enemy  came. 

On  May  29,  1777,  Col.  -Return  J.  Meigs,  himself  of  Guil- 
ford stock,  led  an  expedition  from  Sachem's  Head,  in  three 
sloops  and  thirteen  whale-boats.  In  twenty-four  hours,  with 
one  hundred  and  seventy  men,  he  crossed  the  Sound  to  Sag 
Harbor ;  broke  up  a  depot  of  the  British  there,  destroying 
much  property  ;  took  ninety-six  prisoners  without  losing  a 
man  ;  and  returned  safely  to  Sachem's  Head.  For  this  ser- 
vice Congress  voted  him  a  sword. 

Singularly  enough,  the  next  month  saw  the  first  descent  of 
the  British  on  our  soil,  at  the  place  from  whence  Col.  Meigs 
set  sail,  for  on  June  17  a  party  from  three  British  ships  landed 
at  Sachem's  Head  and  burnt  Solomon  Leete's  house  and  two 
barns.  That  fall  the  town  set  up  salt  works,  but  the  project 
was  unsuccessful  and  was  soon  given  up.  In  December  the 
British  landed  at  Point  of  Rocks  and  burnt  Timothy  Shelley's 
house. 

In  January,  1778,  the  town  adopted  the  Articles  of  Con- 
federation between  the  United  States,  acting  here  as  often  as 
though  an  independent  body.  The  pressure  of  want  was 
now  being  felt,  a  committee  was  appointed  to  state  the  prices 
of  the  necessary  articles  of  life  and  some  one  has  written  on 
the  margin  of  the  old  record  book  the  expressive  words  "  tuf 
times." 

In  February,  1778,  the  bounty  of  £10  was  again  offered, 
as  it  was  twice  later,  and  taxes  rose  that  year  to  twelve 
pence  in  the  pound ;  yet  that  was  not  the  very  worst,  for 
the  tax  in  1779  was  five  shillings  in  the  pound!  !  !  This 


1 86 

tax  was  payable  in  anything  the  Selectmen  should  judge 
necessary  for  the  support  of  the  town's  poor,  or  of  the  soldiers' 
families. 

Some  time  after  Burgoyne's  surrender  four  of  his  troops 
came  to  Guilford  and  were  concealed  in  the  house  of  Samuel 
Johnson.  Endeavoring  to  escape  in  a  whale-boat  on  West 
River  they  ran  aground,  were  captured  and  obliged  to  confess 
where  they  had  been  hidden,  whereupon  Mr.  Johnson  was 
fined  and  mercifully  let  off  with  that.  On  June  18,  1781,  the 
most  serious  attack  of  the  British  was  made.  About  one 
hundred  and  fifty  ,men  landing  at  Leete's  Island,  where 
Deacon  Peletiah  Leete  had  built  a  guard  house  a  short  time 
before,  and  finding  no  opponents,  set  fire  to  the  house  and 
barns  of  Mr.  Daniel  Leete  ;  they  then  advanced  towards  the 
village,  when  the  alarm  was  given.  Captain  Peter  Vail,  as- 
sembling his  company  as  quickly  as  possible,  led  them  toward 
the  smoke  of  the  burning  buildings.  When  they  approached 
the  enemy  a  spirited  attack  was  made,  our  men  firing  from 
behind  fences  and  trees.  Captain  Vail  becoming  exhausted 
from  heat,  Lieutenant  Timothy  Field  took  the  command  and 
drove  the  enemy  to  their  boats,  with  the  loss  of  six  or  seven 
men.  Simeon  Leete,  whose  tombstone  is  conspicuous  on 
the  roadside  to-day,  and  Ebenezer  Hart  of  the  Guilford  men, 
were  mortally  wounded  and  Captain  Vail,  being  in  poor  health 
at  the  time,  went  into  a  decline  and  died  from  his  over-ex- 
ertion. 

All  Guilford  men,  however,  were  not  patriotic  and  the  brave 
Captain  Samuel  Lee  and  his  equally  courageous  wife  had 
many  an  exciting  adventure  with  Tories.  In  1767,  the  Rev. 
Bela  Hubbard  of  Christ  Church  wrote  of  his  parishoners : 
"During  the  late  strife  about  stamp  duty  they  preserved  a 
loyal  and  dutiful  regard  to  his  majesty's  imposition."  Some 
were  Tories  to  the  very  end,  so  that  in  1781  a  Legislative 
committee  came  and  recorded  twenty  men  as  "inimical  and 
dangerous  persons."  After  the  war  was  over,  .in  1790,  the 
town  meeting  voted  that  these  proceedings,  which  were  orig- 
inally entered  on  a  fly  leaf  and  not  in  their  proper  place,  be 
expunged.  In  the  same  spirit,  at  different  times,  six  men 


[87 

were  forgiven  fines  imposed  "for  refusing  to  pay  an  active 
obedience  to  the  Military  Institution"  or  "for  refusing  to 
march  when  draughted  in  the  late  war." 

In  1782,  at  the  very  end  of  the  struggle,  came  the  last 
descent  of  the  British  and  the  only  one  in  Madison.  Land- 
ing  near  the  east  wharf,  they  were  met  by  the  militia,  under 
Captain  Phinehas  Meigs,  and  repulsed  with  loss  ;  yet  we,  too, 
suffered,  for  the  gallant  leader  of  the  Americans  fell,  shot 
through  the  head. 

Guilford's  further  military  history,  during  the  period  allotted 
to  me,  is  little  but  a  record  of  militia  training  days.  In  the 
War  of  1812  a  volunteer  artillery  company  was  raised  in 
Guilford,  which  had  two  brass  field  pieces,  kept  in  the  town 
house,  and  another  in  Madison,  which  had  an  iron  cannon. 

A  company  of  state  troops,  not  liable  to  service  out  of  it, 
was  formed  in  Guilford  and  Branford,  with  Abraham  I.  Chit- 
tenden,  Abraham  Rogers  and  William  Todd  as  commissioned 
officers.  A  detachment  of  this  company  served  at  New  Lon- 
don under  Lieutenant  Todd  and  at  New  Haven  under 
Lieutenant  Rogers. 

At  the  close  o'f  the  period  given  me  to  treat,  the  clouds  of 
war  darken  again  and  Guilford,  as  ever,  does  more  than  her 
duty.  But  of  that,  it  falls  not  to  me  to  speak.  My  task  is 
done,  if  I  have  shown  some  few  glimpses  of  the  history  of 
a  town,  settled  by  those  "in  whose  veins  ran  the  best  blood  of 
England's  gentlemen."  It  is  not  a  history  filled  with  startling 
events,  or  with  record  of  rapid  growth,  but  it  is  the  story  of  a 
people,  which  at  the  beginning  founded  an  independent  nation, 
"with  a  completer  constitution  than  any  other  in  the  world," 
which,  "more  than  most  others  in  the  state,  retained  the 
ancient  manners  of  the  New  England  Colonies,"  and  which 
to-day  have  not  lost  their  ancestral  spirit  and  reputation 
among  the  sister  towns. 

In  days  of  old,  the  freeman  of  the  seven  hilled  city  stood 
forth  to  the  world  and  made  the  simple  but  proud  assertion, 
"Civis  Romanus  sum."  Looking  back  at  the  honorable  past 
of  our  town,  may  not  we  all,  no  less  proud  than  he,  gladly  say  : 
"  We,  too,  are  free  born,  for  our  ancestors  were  men  of 
Guilford ! " 


GUILFORD  AND   MADISON    DURING  THE 
LATH    WAR. 

BY 

MISS    KATE   FOOTE,  GUILFORD. 


|  Miss  Footc  is  a  descendant  of  Eli  Foote  (177-)  and   ( ).] 


The  title  of  this  paper  covers  a  multitude  of  good  deeds. 
It  means  what  was  done  by  us  who  stayed  at  home ;  by  the 
towns  through  their  men  who  could  not  enlist,  could  not  go 
into  active  service  themselves ;  by  the  women  who  were  not 
expected  to  go  to  battle ;  in  short,  what  was  done  by  all  of  us 
who  saw  our  brothers,  sons  and  husbands  "go  to  the  war." 

The  pages  of  history  in  glorious  lines  give  the  work  of  our 
brave  boys  on  battle-fields  and  on  weary  marches.  The 
names  of  Ward  Benton,  of  Henry  C.  Dudley,  Ellsworth 
Hull,  Charles  Benton,  of  Edwin  Leete  and  Samuel  Griswold, 
of  Edward  Hart  and  James  Dowd  and  Edgar  Ely,  of  all 
those  on  our  Roll  of  Honor,  dead  and  alive,  are  written  in 
history  or  chiseled  on  the  monuments  we  have  raised  to  them  ; 
they  are  deeply  graven  still  in  the  hearts  of  many  of  us — 
their  fame  is  safe.  To-day  I  give  you  those  whose  duty  it  was 
to  stay  at  home,  those  whose  work  it  was  to  uphold  the  hands 
that  were  raised  in  defense  of  the  cause  we  loved.  In  a  gen- 
eral way  we  knew  that  the  furtherance  of  war  required  men 
and  money  in  vast  quantities.  How  to  raise  the  money 
became  the  question  with  the  men  who  were  left  behind. 
How  to  look  after  those  who  were  gone  and  give  them  the 
few  comforts  that  a  soldier  can  have  in  the  greatest  quantities 
was  the  question  with  the  women. 

In  Guilford  we  had  our  little  troubles  in  learning  what  to 


1 88 

do  for  the  soldiers.  We  gave  ourselves  to  "havelocks"  at 
first  and  used  up  three  bolts  of  linen  in  that  way.  At  the 
beginning  of  the  war  we  all  thought  that  south  of  Washing- 
ton one  stepped  immediately  into  the  tropics.  After  we  heard 
a  soldier  tell  that  the  water  in  his  canteen  froze  under  his 
head  one  night  when  he  was  sleeping  on  it  in  a  South  Caro- 
lina swamp  we  began  to  realize  that  tropical  countries  were 
where  the  geography  had  always  insisted  they  were,  strictly 
under  the  equator.  I  fear  that  our  havelocks  went  to  pave 
Virginia  soil  and  to  one  duty  only,  that  of  cleaning  the  sol- 
diers' guns.  We  got  over  that  very  soon  and  then  we  organ- 
ized and  went  to  work  in  a  regular  way.  There  was  a  vast 
army  in  the  field  ;  there  was  another  at  home — a  back  coun- 
try, so  to  speak,  of  willing,  loving  hearts  to  fight  from.  We 
formed  ourselves  into  a  Soldiers'  Aid  Society  in  Music  Hall, 
at  that  time  Congress  Hall,  in  the  late  spring  of  1861. 
Madison  formed  a  like  society  at  nearly  the  same  time  and  the 
officers  were  :  Mrs.  Henry  Lee,  President  ;  Mrs.  Philander 
P.  Coe,  Vice-President ;  Mrs.  Elihu  Kelsey,  Secretary.  And 
from  that  we  went  on.  By  following  with  perseverance,  some 
of  our  lady  citizens  here  and  in  Madison  I  gathered  a  few  sta- 
tistics. 

"  We  sent  off  five  thousand  yards  of  bandages  in  casks  in 
three  days.  I  remember  how  they  sewed  at  one  end  of  the 
room  and  how  Mr.-  John  Stanton  helped  me  pack  them  at  the 
other  end  of  the  room.  Then  they  wanted  two  hundred 
hospital  shirts.  Some  of  us  were  detailed  to  cut,  some  to 
sew  and  one,"  said  she,  with  a  smile, '  was  sent  into  the  streets 
to  notice  which  way  a  shirt  should  button,  from  left  to  right 
or  the  reverse.'  The  first  man  I  met  I  did  not  dare  look  at 
for  fear  I  should  laugh,  but  with  the  second,  I  was  aware  that 
time  was  flying,  and  I  used  my  eyes  to  some  purpose  and  in 
five  minutes  more  I  was  able  to  go  back  and  report" 

I  said  the  work  of  men  and  women  is  more  or  less  inter- 
linked. Madison  sent  a  special  committee  to  the  field,  Mr. 
George  Dowd,  Mr.  Samuel  R.  Crampton,  Mr.  S.  H.  Scranton. 
They  were  to  look  after  and  assist  volunteers  from  Madison- 
Mr.  Scranton  caused  it  to  be  known  that  he  would  on  a  cer- 


190 

tain  day  go  down  to  Falmouth,  Virginia,  where  the  I4th 
Regiment  was  encamped,  and  would  take  at  his  own  expense 
whatever  eatables  the  soldiers'  friends  would  send.  He  was 
obliged  to  start  at  the  moment  he  said  he  would  because  his 
kitchen,  cellar  and  wood  house  were  piled  high  with  the  boxes 
and  packages  sent  in  response  to  his  kind  invitation.  Mr. 
Scranton  had  a  pass  signed  by  the  Secretary  of  War  and  had 
no  difficulty  in  getting  through  with  his  valuable  freight. 

Guilford  has  not  on  its  records  the  mention  of  any  such 
committee  appointed  by  the  town.  They  were  appointed  by 
private  hand.  The  people  of  the  Third  Congregational 
Church  spent  part  of  the  hours  of  their  Thursday  meeting  in 
.taking  subscriptions  to  send  newspapers  to  the  soldiers  in  the 
field  and  to  the  hospitals  both.  The  New  Haven  papers,  the 
sVi-zi'  York  Independent,  Harper V  Magazine,  and  The  Atlantic 
were  down  on  the  list  and  followed  as  faithfully  as  they 
could  the  fortunes  of  the  three-months'  men,  and  later  those 
who  enlisted  for  three  years  or  the  war.  The  Rev.  William 
Smith,  pastor  of  the  First  Congregational  Church,  after  the 
battle  of  Antietam  went  down  to  Boliver  Heights,  taking 
with  him  a  supply  of  provisions  for  the  men  in  the  I4th  Regi- 
ment. It  may  be  that  these  very  boxes  packed  full  of  home- 
made good  things,  cheered  the  heart  of  the  beloved  Captain, 
the  Rev.  Samuel  Fiske  of  Madison,  when  he  wrote  so  feel- 
ingly of  the  "inevitable  hard  tack  and  salt  junk  with  bean 
coffee,"  and  then  he  said,  "  I  can  speak  from  experience  of  the 
raptures  of  a  starved  and  generally  used-up  Lieutenant  over 
the  possession  of  a  loaf  of  real  bread,  the  first  that  had  made 
his  heart  glad  for  weeks." 

So  nearly  as  men's  work  can  be  divided  from  women's 
work  I  make  the  division  in  this  article.  How  much  the 
women  sustained  and  cheered  the  men,  how  much  the  women 
suffered  in  seeing  them  go,  are  things  not  upon  any  records, 
that  never  can  be  put  upon  any  page,  one  feels  like  bowing 
his  head  and  remaining  silent  when  these  deepest  and  sad- 
dest feelings  are  mentioned. 

Neither  upon  the  town  records  is  any  account  of  the  linens 
and  jellies,  the  quilts  and  mittens  and  blankets  that  went  to 


the  hospitals  and  the  Sanitary  Commission.  Mrs.  Henry  B. 
Starr  brought  to  the  store  of  Mr.  John  A.  Stanton,  where 
much  of  the  packing  was  done,  a  great  pile  of  family  linen 
marked  in  blue  and  dating  back  25  or  30  years.  We  should 
like  some  of  that  now  in  our  collection  of  relics — "but,"  she 
said,  "though  of  ancestral  value  it  can  never  be  put  to  better 
use."  Others  did  the  same.  I  came  myself,  one  day,  upon  a 
stock  of  nice  old  home-made  linen,  the  solid,  honest  stuff  our 
great-grandmothers  wove,  a  generous  pile  of  it,  down  in 
South  Carolina,  in  a  field  hospital,  where  it  was  being  cut 
and  used  for  wounds  and  for  sick  men,  in  ways  the  spin- 
ner and  the  weaver  never  dreamed  of  when  she  bent  over  her 
loom.  I  said  to  the  surgeon,  "Some  good  woman  opened  her 
heart  when  she  gave  these.  She  must  have  said  to  herself, 
somebody's  boy  will  get  these  treasures  if  mine  doesn't,"  and 
he  handled  them  more  gently,  I  thought  for  a  moment. 

We  gave  generously  and  forgot  with  equal  generosity.  If 
it  was  hard  to  find  what  the  men  of  Madison'  and  Guilford 
gave  at  private  hand,  it  is  harder  still  to  find  what  the  women 
gave.  I  asked  the  members  of  the  Soldiers'  Aid  Society 
here  and  in  Madison,  have  you  any  idea  now  how  much  you 
sent  and  they  said — "Not  very  much — I  remember  going 
about  to  collect  and  we  sent  off  at  one  time  three  barrels  and 
24  boxes  full  of  all  good  things.  At  another  time — well — it 
was  more  boxes,  and  that  is  all  I  can  tell." 

One  lady  to  whom  I  wrote  asking  if  she  could  tell  what 
her  mother  (now  dead)  had  done,  that  she  had  given  a  great 
deal,  I  was  sure,  but  nobody  knew  exactly  how  much, 
answered,  "You  could  not  have  appealed  to  any  more  ignorant 
person  than  I  to  know  what  my  mother  did  for  the  soldiers' 
comfort.  Something  possibly  could  be  learned  from  the  bank 
book  and  cheque  stubs  of  those  years,  but  I  doubt  if  they  are 
still  in  existence,  or  even  if  one  would  be  able  to  decide  for  what 
purpose  they  were  used.  I  suppose  she  did  whatever  she  was 
asked  and  in  the  way  she  was  asked."  That  account  is 
entered  on  a  higher  and  more  shining  page  than  any  here  and 
no  blot,  we  may  feel  sure,  mars  its  perfection. 

Much  was  sent  by  private  hand  as  well  as   to   the  sanitary 


commission.  Mr.  John  A.  Stanton,  who  helped  me  compile 
what  estimates  I  have  been  able  to  make,  remembered  mark- 
ing forty-three  barrels  of  vegetables  that  were  to  go  to 
soldiers,  Mr.  S.  H.  Scranton  remembered  thirty  barrels  of 
potatoes  ready  to  go  at  one  time — these  were  very  little  by- 
plays, mere  trifles  to  show  that  we  were  full  of  good  feeling. 
From  all  sources  Guilford  contributed  $2,500  a  year,  or 
$10,000  during  the  four  years  of  the  war,  in  ways  that  may 
be  called  womanly.  Madison  must  have  given  nearly  as 
much,  because  her  women  are  never  behind  the  men,  and  we 
shall  presently  see  what  the  men  gave. 

The  guns  of  Sumter  woke  us,  like  the  rest  of  the  loyal 
people,  from  our  long  and  peaceful  rest.  We  were  still  a  little 
inclined  to  rub  our  eyes  and  look  about  us  when  the  Presi- 
dent's first  call  for  troops  came  and  completed  our  awakening 
—75,000  volunteers  to  do  a  three  months'  service.  It  came 
on  the  morning  of  the  I5th  of  April.  It  was  a  businesslike 
beginning,  and  after  the  awful  feelings  of  uncertainty  which 
had  prevailed  during  the  winter  of  1861  it  was  a  relief  to 
know  that  the  remedy  was  to  be  short  and  sharp.  Soldiers  for 
three  months — Guilford  must  do  her  part  as  one  of  the  oldest 
towns  of  one  of  the  oldest  commonwealths.  Accordingly,  I 
find  an  especial  town  meeting  called  for  the  3Oth  of  April. 
The  paper  for  the  call  for  this  meeting  is  in  the  handwriting 
of  Dr.  Talcott,  and  was  signed  by  Mr.  J.  M.  Hunt,  Mr.  Bev- 
erley  Monroe,  Mr.  H.  E.  Norton,  Mr.  S.  D.  Munger,  Mr. 
George  E.  Kimberley,  H.  N.  Chamberlain,  F.  C.  Phelps, 
James  Monroe,  John  Graves,  Cornelius  Wildman,  Albert 
Wildman,  J.  A.  Stanton,  Charles  E.  Chittenden,  H.  B.  Gris- 
wold,  H.  W.  Scranton,  James  R.  Frisbie,  Henry  Hale,  John 
Hale,  N.  F.  Leete. 

The  selectmen,  to  whom  it  was  presented,  cast  their  eyes 
over  it  to  see  whether  it  had  the  required  number  which  em- 
powered them  to  call  an  extra  meeting.  Yes,  there  were  the 
names  of  twenty  good  men  and  true,  of  both  parties,  the  re- 
quirements of  law  were  fulfilled,  and  they  put  clown  theirs 
with  alacrity — A.  B.  Morse,  Henry  Fowler,  Luzerne  C.  Ros- 
siter. 


'93 

Mr.  Samuel  C.  Johnson  was  chosen  moderator  and  they 
met  in  the  old  Town  Hall  to  discuss  war  and  war  rules  for  the 
first  time  since  that  venerable  shell  had  reared  its  head  into 
the  air.  The  war  of  1812,  the  war  of  1840  had  not  called 
out  any  expression  like  this. 

The  sheet  anchor  resolution  to  sustain  the  National  gov- 
ernment, now  struggling  for  its  very  existence,  went  first  as 
if  to  make  a  substantial  platform,  and  on  that  was  set,  first  a 
resolution,  "  that  every  inhabitant  of  this  town,  whether  mar- 
ried or  single,  who  shall  go  forth  to  fight  for  his  country  shall 
receive  our  care  and  support" — and  then— for  the  man  who 
fights  must  be  sustained  and  comforted  in  all  ways,  then  came 
the  vote  of  money  to  suitably  arm  and  equip  the  volun- 
teers. There  was  a  little  bit  of  independence  and  State 
rights  about  that.  We  were  ready  to  clothe  and  arm  our 
soldiers,  we  did  not  demand  it  of  the  United  States  govern- 
ment, and  on  the  heels  of  that  a  committee  was  appointed  to 
carry  out  the  intentions  of  this  resolution.  Mr.  James  A. 
Norton,  Albert  B.  Wildman,  Beverly  Monroe,  John  H.  Bart- 
lett,  Calvin  M.  Leete,  Samuel  W.  Dudley  and  William  M. 
Dudley. 

Then  came  the  last  resolution,  a  committee  whose  pleasant 
duty  it  should  be  "  to  erect  forthwith  a  Liberty  Pole  upon  our 
Public  Square  not  less  than  a  hundred  feet  high,  and  place 
thereon  a  magnificent  flag  of  the  stars  and  stripes,  and  also 
another  one  upon  the  Green  at  North  Guilford."  With  the 
selectmen  for  this  purpose  the  committee,  Mr.  Eber  S- 
Hotchkiss,  Mr.  Samuel  S.  Stone  and  Mr.  Russell  Potter. 

Some  of  us  remember  the  strong  slender  pole  that  arose  on 
the  Green  a  few  days  after  this,  and  the  first  woman's  work  for 
our  country  was  the  making  of  the  flag  which  floated  from  its 
top.  This  was  done  by  Mrs.  Samuel  Stone  and  her  daughter, 
Miss  Ruth  Stone. 

Madison  held  her  first  special  meeting  May  2cl,  1861. 
The  preamble  of  her  first  meeting  was  presented  by  Mr.  E. 
C.  Scranton,  and  in  it  we  see  a  premonition  of  the  length  of 
the  war,  which  was  prophetic;  none  of  us  could  believe  it 
would  be  a  long  struggle.  Madison  said,  "the  President  of  the 


194 

United  States  has  made  a  requisition  upon  the  Governor  of 
this  State  for  one  or  more  regiments  of  soldiers  for  the  de- 
fence of  our  National  Government  and  property  and  for  the 
vindication  of  the  laws — other  and  similar  requisitions  will  be 
made  before  a  lasting  peace  is  attained  and  rebellion  is  van- 
quished— interest,  patriotic  duty,  self  respect,  and  obligations 
to  the  heroic  men  of  the  past  whose  names  and  blood  we  in- 
herit, alike  demand  that,  as  individuals  and  as  a  community, 
we  do  our  part  in  the  great  struggle." 

The  resolutions  that  followed  put  the  musket  into  the 
soldiers  grasp  and  then  authorized  a  loan  to  the  town  of 
$3,000,  to  keep  it  there,  and  also  promised  to  remember  his 
wife  and  family  while  he  was  gone. 

Then  both  towns  buckled  down  to  their  work.  Money  and 
men — money  and  men.  The  three  months'  enlistment, 
closing  with  the  battle  of  Bull  Run,  told  us  that  the  struggle 
was  to  be  sharp  and — not  so  short  as  we  had  fondly  hoped. 

When  our  late  war  broke  out  there  was  one  man  who  had 
the  power  to  see  that  we  wanted  more  of  a  navy  and  a  differ- 
ent kind  of  ship  from  any  before  used.  He  knew  a  model 
which  would  give  us  the  thing  we  wanted.  He  had  energy 
and  zeal  enough  to  follow  the  government,  which  was  inclined 
to  laugh  at  the  plans  he  showed,  until  he  received  a  grudging 
permission  to  build  this  new  sort  of  ship.  The  permission 
was  burdened  with  the  clause  that  he  was  to  build  in  a  hun- 
dred days  and  if  she  failed  to  conquer  when  put  to  the  proof 
the  money  she  cost  should  be  refunded  to  the  government.. 

History,  for,  as  I  said,  history  has  given  us  the  work  of  our 
brave  boys,  history,  says  the  confederates  took  the  Merrimac, 
a  former  frigate  of  the  United  States  navy,  which  had  fallen 
into  their  hands,  and  sheathed  her  with  railroad  iron,  giving 
her  also  an  iron  prow.  On  March  8th,  1862,  she  sailed  out 
into  Hampton  Roads  and  the  Cumberland  and  the  Congress 
and  the  rest  of  the  United  States  fleet  went  down  before  their 
clumsy  adversary,  which  looked  like  a  barn  afloat.  Suddenly 
the  Monitor  appeared  and  the  fortunes  of  war  changed.  We 
saved  our  navy,  and  England  and  France  looking  on  went  to 
building  iron  clad  ships  from  that  day.  The  man  who  had 


195 

the  energy  and  forethought  to  plan  all  this  was  C.  S.  Bushnell 
of  Madison.  Erickson  carried  the  Monitor  and  he  carried 
Erickson. 

Extract  from  letter  to  Miss  Foote  from  Admiral  Worden, 
dated 

"QUAKER  HILL,  N.  Y.,  SEPT.  QTH,  1889  (p.  M). 

"  I  have  always  thought  that  Messrs.  Bushnell,  Winslow  and  Griswold 
have  never  received  from  their  country  the  applause  they  deserve  for  the 
patriotic  and  practical  support  they  gave  to  the  government  in  its  hour  of 
need,  for  to  them  is  undoubtedly  very  largely  due  the  credit  for  the  build- 
ing and  equipping  of  the  Monitor  in  time  to  enable  her  to  meet  the  desper- 
ate emergency  at  Hampton  Roads  in  1862." 

Another  especial  meeting  was  called  in  Guilford  on  the 
2Qth  of  July.  The  terms  of  enlistment  for  the  three  months 
men  had  run  out  and  the  men  were  returning,  yet  the  war 
was  to  go  on  until  we  were  again  the  United  States.  The 
President  had  issued  a  call  for  300,000  volunteers.  At  this 
time  the  town  voted  a  bounty  of  $75,  to  which  Mr.  S.  B. 
Chittenden  added  $25,  making  it  $100  for  each  enlisted  man. 

Let  me  here  mention  the  great  difficulty  I  have  had  in  find- 
ing out  how  much  was  done  by  private  hands  in  this  sort  of 
way  by  the  men  of  our  two  towns.  By  accident  I  came  upon 
Mr.  Chittenden's  addition  to  the  $75  bounty,  and  I  know  that 
other  men  gave  from  their  own  money,  men  not  as  rich  as  he, 
but  who  still  gave  liberally.  Some  of  those  who  are  now  liv- 
ing I  wrote,  asking  them  to  tell  me  what  they  had  done. 
Invariably  the  answer  was,  "  I  kept  no  account ;  I  did  not 
desire  to.  If  I  had  a  dollar  more  than  my  necessities  required 
I  gave  it  cheerfully."  Mr.  F.  A.  Drake  said  there  were  other 
men  who  were  glad  to  give  as  well  as  I,  of  whom  I  recall  a 
few.  Then  he  mentioned  their  names :  E.  R.  Landon, 
Albert  Wildman,  John  Hale,  who  are  dead  and  beyond  the 
reach  of  our  voices.  But  there  were  others,  too,  still  living, 
who  were  proud  to  give  for  the  defense  of  our  union  :  Mr. 
Calvin  Leete,  Mr.  John  R.  Stanton,  Dr.  Talcott ;  in  Madison, 
Mr.  E.  C.  Scranton,  Mr.  Bushnell  and  others.  Good  deeds 
sometimes  come  home  to  roost  as  late  as  twenty -five  years 
after  they  have  gone  forth. 


196 

Madison  held  her  second  especial  meeting  a  day  before 
us,  and  voted  a  second  appropriation  of  $5,000  and  re- 
solved that  from  the  bounty  of  a  hundred  dollars  to  each 
enlisted  man,  twenty-five  dollars  should  be  reserved  for  a 
fund  for  those  disabled  or  sick,  and  for  their  families  in  case 
of  need,  and  named  Mr.  E.  C.  Scranton,  H.  B.  Washburne, 
and  William  S.  Hull  as  a  committee  to  carry  the  vote  into 
effect.  It  also  made  an  especial  paragraph  on  its  records  for 
some  non-resident  men  who  enlisted  in  Madison.  They  were 
to  receive  the  same  bounty  as  the  others  who  were  natives. 
I  find  in  the  Madison  records  one  point  that  I  did  not  notice 
in  those  of  Guilford.  They  especially  stipulated  that  the 
collectors  of  this  tax  which  the  town  laid  upon  itself  to  sup- 
port its  soldiers,  should  not  receive  any  extra  fees  for  doing 
the  work.  They  should  receive  only  the  regular  payment, 
such  as  had  been  voted  to  the  regular  collector.  When  a 
New  Englander  regards  an  act  in  the  light  of  duty,  he  offers 
no  premium  upon  it. 

It  was  a  time  of  taxes.  Each  loyal  town  was  willingly 
burdening  itself  with  debt,  and  besides  that  the  government 
was  studying  the  question  of  how  to  raise  money.  It  too 
was  laying  taxes  on  all  sorts  of  goods  and  property,  they 
came  in  on  all  sides,  upon  matches,  upon  dozens  of  articles 
appeared  the  United  States  tax  stamp,  and  we  had  to  pay 
those  indirectly  or  directly;  and  then  besides  all  this  each 
town  deliberately  set  up  its  own  private  taxation  as  bounties 
to  its  volunteers,  and  for  the  care  of  their  families.  There  is 
no  parade,  or  uniform  or  brass  bands,  no  flash  or  glitter,  or 
sentiment  about  a  tax — it  means  a  steady  grind  upon  one's 
pocketbook — it  means  prompt  payment,  there  is  no  compro- 
mising with  one's  tax  list.  The  collector  will  not  take  one's 
note  of  hand.  How  men  hate  their  taxes.  The  aboriginal 
man  has  sometimes  objected  to  becoming  civilized  for  the 
reason  that  he  must  then  be  taxed.  By  its  readiness  to  tax 
itself  you  can  gauge  the  willingness  of  a  people  in  any  great 
undertaking. 

Madison,   at  her  annual   town    meeting,   held   October  2d, 
1865,  voted  to  lay  a  tax  of  two  cents  on  a  dollar  upon  herself 


197 

and  by  this  promptness  payed  her  war-debt  almost  immedi- 
ately. 

The  work  of  defending  the  union  went  on.  There  is  again 
an  especial  meeting,  for  I  notice  both  in  Madison  and  Guil- 
lord  records  that  especial  meetings  were  always  called  when 
there  was  a  question  of  something  to  be  done  for  the  soldiers, 
as  if  they  wished  to  give  their  whole  minds  to  the  great  ques- 
tion before  them.  Only  twice  do  I  find  in  a  regular  town 
meeting  held  in  Madison  an  allusion  to  the  soldiers,  and  that 
was  to  confirm  a  vote  passed  at  an  especial  meeting,  as  if  to 
settle  any  question  or  doubt  there  might  have  come  up  about 
that  particular  paragraph.  Through  all  these  especial  meet- 
ings there  was  devotion  to  the  one  object — care  for  the  volun- 
teers, and  Madison  and  Guilford  both  sent  special  committees 
into  the  field,  among  the  men  themselves,  to  see  that  they 
were  as  well  taken  care  of  as — as — a  soldier  can  be.  Of  them 
I  spoke  on  an  earlier  page. 

Madison  held  in  all  five  special  meetings  and  Guilford 
seven.  I  think  there  was  some  quarrelling  in  our  town 
towards  the  last  of  the  war.  The  page  of  records  is  very 
reticent  on  this  subject.  But  one  could  hardly  help  reading 
between  the  lines,  when  one  observed  that  the  three  last 
meetings  instead  of  being  "dissolved"  were  "adjourned"  and 
met  again  in  a  few  days,  and — again — instead  of  dissolving 
met  once  more  at  the  end  of  a  week. 

Madison,  too,  had  her  little  troubles  of  the  same  sort,  visi- 
ble on  the  records,  although  nearly  forgotten  now,  so  smoothly 
has  time  rubbed  down  all  our  ancient  difficulties.  There  is 
always  a  "prudent"  party  to  every  public  expenditure,  and 
the  strain  of  the  long  war,  the  demand  for  men,  the  money 
that  the  town  was  paying  out,  brought  the  prudent  element 
to  the  surface.  They  did  not  want  to  see  the  town  run  into 
debt  too  deeply.  They  did  not  like  to  see  the  selectmen  em- 
powered "to  borrow  25,000  on  the  faith  and  credit  of  the 
town,"  as  it  was  quaintly  expressed  at  one  meeting.  They 
did  not  love  taxes.  Neither  did  the  rest  of  us !  But  we 
must  fight  on  to  the  end.  We  did.  It  was  a  creditable  end 
when  it  came.  Madison  sent  to  the  war  152  men  and  gave 


198 

by  a  vote  of  the  town  $16,065.     Guilford  sent  308  men  and 
gave   $21,166. 

We  can  always  say  to  the  prudent  ones  whose  faces  were 
long  when  they  thought  of  our  debt,  "  the  solution  of  the 
question  of  the  war  for  the  maintenance  of  the  Union  was 
worth  more  than  it  cost.  There  have  been  useless  wars,  but 
this  was  not  one  of  them,"  says  John  Fiske :  "  It  was  in 
the  direct  interest  of  peace,  and  the  victory  was  an  earnest  of 
future  peace  and  happiness  for  the  world." 


DINNER. 


Arrangements  were  made  by  the  Committee  on  Hospitality  to  bring  the 
guests  and  residents  together  in  a  social  way  at  a  Picnic  Dinner  A  large 
tent  was  erected  on  the  lot  adjoining  the  postoffice,  on  the  east  side  of  the 
Green,  and  provided  with  tables  and  seats  for  700  people.  The  tables  were 
most  bountifully  supplied  by  the  ladies  of  the  two  towns  and  3,300  were 
fed  during  the  intermission,  Colt's  band  playing  some  fine  selections  near 
the  entrance  to  the  tent  during  the  dinner. 

Great  credit  is  due  Captain  R.  L.  Fowler  of  Guilford  and  Judge  H.  B. 
Wilcox  of  Madison  for  the  completeness  of  the  dinner  arrangements.  The 
attractive  appearance  of  the  long  line  of  tables,  decorated  with  bouquets 
of  flowers,  was  noticed  by  all,  and  the  company  of  young  lady  waitresses 
were  very  efficient. 

After  the  dinner,  the  Presideut  of  the  day  and  other  guests 
spoke  as  follows: 

ELLSWORTH  ELIOT,  M.  D.,  a  descendant  of  Rev.  Joseph 
Eliot  (1664)  and  William  Leete  (1639),  said: 

FRIENDS  AND  FELLOW-CITIZENS:  We  frequently  hear  of  certain  impor- 
tant events  as  happening  but  once  in  a  life-time.  Far  less  frequently  does 
the  privilege  of  commemorating  quarter-millenial  days  fall  to  the  lot  of 
mankind.  Eight  or  nine  generations  of  men  and  women  have  preceded  us, 
who  could  enjoy  it  only  in  imagination.  As  many  generations  will  succeed 
us  before  the  citizens  of  Guilford  will  be  again  summoned  for  a  similar 
purpose. 

The  duty  has  been  assigned  to  me  to  express  the  feeling  of  those  who, 
having  left  the  old  home,  have  been  kindly  invited  to  join  with  the  resi- 
dent citizens  in  celebrating  the  two  hundred  and  fiftieth  anniversary  of  the 
settlement  of  the  town.  This  I  do  most  cordially.  We  lose  not  a  jot  of 
interest  in  its  welfare  by  absence.  A  traveler  who  brings  news  from  the 
home  of  our  fathers,  or  a  paragraph  in  the  newspapers,  preceded  by  the 
words  Guilford,  Conn.,  arrests  and  absorbs  our  attention.  We  are  proud 
of  our  native  town,  for  the  many  useful  men  and  women  she  has  contrib- 
uted to  the  nation.  Be  assured  that  we  carry  with  us  in  our  pilgrimages 
loving  remembrance  of  those  left  behind.  The  beautiful  Green  with  its 
adjoining  churches,  the  broad  and  shaded  streets  with  their  time-worn 
houses,  the  rocks,  the  hills,  the  rivers,  the  woods,  the  shore  and  the  sound 


2OO 

beyond,  with  Falcon  Island  in  the  distance,  are  i.idelibly  impressed  upon 
our  memories.  Nor  can  we  forget  the  familiar  faces  of  our  childhood,  or 
the  graves  of  our  ancestors. 

The  profession  to  which  I  have  the  honor  to  belong  requires  of  its'  mem- 
bers that  they  should  hear  all  the  people  have  to  say  to  them,  but  should 
tell  nothing.  You  will,  therefore,  not  expect  extended  remarks  from  your 
presiding  officer,  but,  rather  like  yourselves,  he  should  listen  to  those 
whose  eloquence  will  charm  us.  But  let  me  say,  in  closing,  Guilford,  thus 
far  happy  and  glorious,  may  happiness  and  glory  await  her  during  ages 
yet  unborn. 

MR.  SIDNEY  W.  LEETE,  a  descendant  of  Governor  William 
Leete,  said: 

MR.  PRESIDENT:  The  twelfth  commandment  is,  "  Thou  shall  not  apolo- 
gize," and  I  will  try  and  keep  it;  but,  like  the  Irish  member  of  Parliament, 
I  wish  to  say  a  few  words  before  I  begin.  The  time  it  takes  is  not  to  count. 

I  am  called  here  "to  speak  in  behalf  of  the  town"  to  this  great  multi- 
tude of  returned  prodigals.  I  was  also  told,  "  You  are  to  speak  about  five 
minutes  "  This,  I  suppose,  refers  to  the  time  I  am  to  speak  and  not  to  the 
subject  of  remark.  The  kind  and  thoughtful  chairman  inserted  this  saving 
clause,  "  You  are  to  say  exactly  what  you  please." 

Before  I  undertake  the  pleasant  duty  first  mentioned,  I  wish  to  speak  of 
one  or  two  things  that  demand  notice.  As  citizens  of  Guilford  we  stand 
to-day  in  the  shadow  of  a  great  affliction.  The  chariots  and  horsemen 
have  taken  from  us  a  master  whom  we  loved  and  delighted  to  honor,  a  pil- 
lar on  which  we  had  learned  to  lean  heavily.  He  has  gone  to  the  Master 
whom  he  served  so  faithfully,  who  said,  "  Where  I  am  there  shall  also  my 
servant  be,"  and  whose  word  of  promise  to  the  ear  was  never  yet  broken  to 
the  hope.  He  is  now,  we  doubt  not,  a  pillar  in  the  temple  not  made  with 
hands.  More  fitting  words  than  mine  will  be  said  of  him,  but  none  more 
true.  The  dignity  and  courtly  grace  of  his  bearing  were  exceeded  only  by 
the  goodness  and  faithfulness  of  his  life.  We  shall  miss  his  kindly  and 
gracious  presence  from  our  streets,  and  we  shall  miss  him  most  of  all  in 
such  work  as  we  are  doing  in  this'celebration.  His  last  words  were  con- 
cerning this  work,  and  his  interest  in  its  success  was  equal  to  that  of  any 
other  man.  Our  hearts  are  filled  with  grief,  our  eyes  with  tears,  and  from 
our  lips  the  ancient  cry  breaks  forth  afresh:  "  Help,  Lord,  for  the  godly 
man  ceascth,  for  the  faithful  fail  from  among  the  children  of  men."  Faith- 
ful as  a  soldier,  faithful  as  a  minister,  faithful  as  a  citizen,  he  enjoys  the 
reward  of  the  faithful.  Rest,  soldier,  rest. 

"  Still  may  thy  mild  rebuking  stand 

Between  us  and  the  wrong, 
And  thy  dear  memory  serve  to  make 

Our  faith  in  goodness  strong." 

Faithful  saint,  hail  and  farewell.  We  do  well  to  mourn  together  here 
to-day.  "  Blessed  are  they  that  mourn,  for  they  shall  be  comforted."  We 


2OI 

find  great  comfort  in  the  fact  that  the  mantle  of  our  friend  has  found  its 
way  to  worthy  shoulders.  These  shoulders  belong  to  the  honored  rector  of 
Christ  Church,  the  worthy  chairman  of  all  the  committees  of  this  celebra- 
tion. In  goodness  and  faithfulness  the  peer  of  his  predecessor,  we  can  all 
join  in  saying  of  him  as  Halleck  said  of  Drake. 

"  None  know  him  but  to  love  him, 
None  name"  him  but  to  praise." 

He  is  a  remarkable  man.  His  ubiquitous  presence  is  wonderful.  If 
you  ascend  he  is  there.  If  you  descend,  behold  !  he  is  there.  If  you 
hide  in  the  darkness,  even  there  his  eye  will  discover  you,  and  from  thence 
his  hand  will  bring  you  out.  A  prodigious  worker  himself,  he  makes 
everybody  else  work.  He  does  every  thing  well,  be  it  playing  crambo  or 
running  a  celebration.  It  is  true  of  him  as  Lowell  said  it  was  of  Willis, 

"  That  had  he  been  born 

Where  plain  bare-skins  the  only  full  dress  that  is  worn, 
He'd  have  given  his  own  such  an  air  that  you'd  say 
'T  had  been  made  by  a  tailor  to  lounge  in  Broadway." 

But  he  does  make  us  work  so.  We  can't  live  without  him,  and  much  as 
ever  we  can  live  with  him.  Our  great  fear  is,  when  this  celebration  is 
over,  there  will  be  nothing  left  of  him.  Heaven  forbid  ! 

I  have  not  time  to  speak  of  all  the  Gideons  who  in  this  work  have  fought 
a  good  fight,  wrought  righteousness,  obtained  piomises,  (and  made  people 
keep  them)  stopped  the  mouths  of  growlers,  put  to  flight  the  armies  of 
aliens.  Their  name  is  legion.  They  were  everywhere,  and  would  surely 
catch  you  if  you  didn't  "watch  out."  "As  if  one  did  flee  from  a  lion, 
and  a  bear  met  him."  The  spirit  of  their  master  was  upon  them  all.  But 
I  should  fail  sadly  in  my  duty  if  I  did  not  mention  one  of  them,  not  second 
even  to  the  chairman,  the  loved,  honored  pastor  of  the  Third  Church. 
He  climbs  high  who  reaches  a  higher  place  in  the  esteem  and  affection  of 
Guilford  people.  May  his  shadow  never  be  less.  Bennett,  Andrews  and 
Banks, — a  trinity  of  goodness  seldom  found  in  so  small  a  town  as  ours. 
Better  an  hour  of  such  men's  lives  than  a  cycle  of  Cathay. 

You  can  time  me  now,  Sir,  I  am  ready  to  begin. 

Mr.  President,  ladies  and  gentlemen,  children  from  Madison  and  chil- 
dren from  all  parts  of  our  broad  land,  Parthians,  and  Medes,  and  Elamites, 
and  dwellers  in  Mesopotamia,  strangers  of  Rome,  Jews  and  proselytes, 
Cretes  and  Arabians,  and  if  there  be  any  other  creature,  we  bid  you  wel- 
come here  to-day.  You  are  a  great  company,  but  the  old  town's  heart  of 
love  is  large  enough,  and  her  arms  of  love  are  long  enough,  to  take  you  all 
in.  Come  in,  children,  one  and  all.  Again  we  say  welcome,  welcome, 
thrice  welcome,  to  the  old  town,  the  good  old  town,  the  dear  old  town  of 
Guilford.  God  bless  her  for  ever.  In  the  sea  of  faces  before  me  I  see 
many  interrogation  points  asking,  "Why  was  he  appointed  to  that  place?" 
I  behold  also  many  exclamation  points  crying  "  Alas  !  alas  !  "  That's  just 
the  way  I  feel.  Why  the  appointment  was  made,  may  be  because  the 
committee  wanted  some  one  to  give  character  and  dignity  to  these  exer- 


2O2 

ciscs.  Or,  it  may  be  they  could  get  no  one  else.  Which  of  these  is  the 
trite  reason  I  will  not  say,  but  it  was  not  the  first.  I  had  two  good  reasons 
for  accepting  the  call.  The  chairman  of  the  committee  said  if  I  dared  to 
refuse  he  would  do  a  dreadful  thing, — a  thing  which  if  done  would  con- 
sign him  to  a  horrible  fate.  To  save  him  I  sacrificed  myself.  And  another 
good  reason  was,  he  said,  "  You  will  be  assisted  by  Senator  Hawley."  If 
I  chance  to  say  what  the  Senator  intended  to  have  said  I  am  sure  he  will 
forgive  me.  But  I  am  not  sure  what  he  can  say.  I  am  reminded  of  a  story 
I  read  long  ago.  A  distinguished  Senator  once  went  to  a  prayer  meeting. 
This,  Mr.  President,  is  a  true  story,  or,  at  any  rate,  the  first  sentence  is. 
Let  me  repeat  it.  A  distinguished  senator  once  went  to  a  prayer  meeting. 
After  remarks  by  several  of  the  brethren  on  various  topics,  came  one  of 
those  dreadful  pauses  which  will  sometimes  come  in  such  a  meeting.  At 
last  the  senator  arose  and  said,  "As  all  other  topics  seem  to  be  exhausted, 
I  will  make  a  few  remarks  on  the  tariff."  If  Senator  Hawley  can't  think 
of  any  thing  else  to  say,  we  shall  be  glad  to  have  him  speak  on  the  tariff. 
If  I  should  speak  on  the  subject,  I  should  say,  the  tariff  will  be  well 
enough,  if  the  doctors  will  let  it  alone. 

I  must  have  a  word  in  regard  to  our  fellow-townsmen  from  Madison,  for 
"  they  are  our  brothers  yet."  There  are  those  who  say,  "There  is  bad  feel- 
ing between  Guilford  and  Madison."  1  tell  you  nay.  There  is  nothing 
between  us  but  a  small  stream  and  that  is  fast  running  away.  No  great, 
fixed  gulf  is  there.  All  who  wish  can  pass  to  them,  from  us,  and  all  may 
come  to  us  who  would  come  from  thence.  Hardly  a  day  passes  in  which 
some  of  them  do  not  come  to  see  their  mother,  and  they  are  always  wel- 
come. The  division  between  us  is  not  real.  Asa  matter  of  fact,  "  we  two 
are  so  joined"  one  will  not  go  to  glory  leaving  'tother  behind.  We  wel- 
come them  all  to  the  family  circle,  never  more  gladly  than  to-day,  and 
assure  them  that  "  as  it  was  in  the  beginning,  it  is  now,  and  ever  shall  be." 
But  I  must  hasten  my  word  to  the  other  children,  wanderers  to  and  fro  in 
the  earth.  To  you  the  old  mother  reaches  her  hand  of  greeting.  For  every 
one  there  is  a  warm  place  in  her  heart,  and  it  will  be  a  cold  day  when  you 
get  left.  Right  gladly  does  she  bid  you  welcome.  You  have  heard  that  it 
was  said  by  them  of  old  time,  "The  rolling  stone  gathers  no  moss,"  or,  as 
the  new  version  has  it,  "  The  stone  that  doesn't  roll  gathers  nothing  else." 
Roll  on,  then,  gathering  wisdom  with  the  rolling  years.  Go  your  ways.  We 
could  not  keep  you  if  we  would,  and  would  not  if  we  could.  We  send  you 
forth  as  sheep  among  wolves.  Be  wise  as  serpents.  Forget  not,  we  pray 
you,  the  old  town.  If  any  ask  you,  "  How  about  old  Guilford?"  let  your 
answer  be  swift  of  foot,  "  She  is  all  right"  Old,  did  I  say?  Ah!  no. 
Slie.  is  not  old.  Because  of  your  presence  here  to-day  she  has  renewed  her 
youth.  Call  her  not  old.  She  is  young  again.  Her  eye  is  not  dim  nor  her 
natural  force  abated.  Call  her  not  old.  Your  coming  has  put  gladness  in 
her  heart  more  than  if  you  had  filled  her  houses  and  streets  with  corn  and 
wine.  Call  her  not  old.  Again  she  has  the  dew  of  her  youth  and  she  is 
not  old.  The  old  must  die,  but  she  is  Fortune's  now, 

"  And  Fame's — 

One  of  the  few,  the  immortal  names, 
That  were  not  born  to  die," 


203 
LIEUTENANT-GOVERNOR  S.  E.  MERWIN  said: 

MR.  PRESIDENT,  LADIES  AND  GENTLEMEN:  A  few  days  since  I  had  the 
honor  of  an  invitation  to  join  with  the  people  of  Milford  in  celebrating 
their  two  hundred  and  fiftieth  anniversary,  which  was  gladly  accepted,  for 
in  that  town  my  ancestor  on  my  father's  side  was  one  of  the  first  settlers 
and  there  he  lived  and  died.  To-day  I  am  under  obligations  to  you  for 
your  kind  invitation  to  take  part  in  your  two  hundred  and  fiftieth  anniver- 
sary, and  it  is  not  strange  that  it  gives  me  more  than  ordinary  interest,  for 
on  the  mother's  side  I  trace  back  my  ancestry  to  a  familiar  name  in  Guil- 
ford,  to-wit — the  name  of  Spencer. 

Two  hundred  and  fifty  years  ago,  under  the  guidance  of  Almighty  God, 
a  little  band  of  brave  men  and  noble  women  settled  in  your  beautiful  town. 
Whether  they  left  their  homes  over  the  ocean  because  of  religious  persecu- 
tions or  for  personal  gain  matters  not,  they  were  an  honest,  hardy,  God- 
fearing people,  and  for  their  coming  we  of  this  day  and  generation  are 
reaping  a  rich  reward.  No  doubt  their  religion  would  be  sharply  criti- 
cised by  the  average  theologian  of  to-day,  but  that  is  not  strange. 

Probably  their  manner  of  doing  business  would  be  looked  upon  by  us  as 
anything  but  business-like.  Let  us  remember  that  two  hundred  and  fifty 
years  have  intervened,  and  that  each  generation  has  been  looking  forward, 
and  not  backward,  except  to  see  where  they  could  improve  upon  the  old 
way.  Let  us  honor  their  memories  for  coming,  and  give  each  generation 
that  followed  full  credit  for  their  advancement.  And  unless  the  present 
generation  leaves  to  that  which  follows,  a  higher  order  of  Morality,  Virtue, 
and  Christianity,  a  higher  respect  for  law  and  order,  more  love  for  the 
Government  that  has  protected  our  homes,  our  liberties  and  our  lives,  we 
shall  prove  unworthy  of  the  blessings  transmitted  to  us,  and  will  have  lived 
in  vain.  From  the  days  of  the  first  settlers  until  the  present  the  people  of 
Connecticut  have  been  first  and  foremost  in  every  good  work.  Two  hun- 
dred and  fifty  years  ago  they  gave  to  the  world  the  first  written  constitution; 
it  was  adopted  by  Connecticut  and  has  since  become  substantially  the  con- 
stitution of  every  State  and  of  the  United  States.  It  was  here  in  those 
early  days  that  the  fundamental  principle  of  a  government  of  the  people, 
for  and  by  the  people,  originated.  The  patriots  of  old  were  a  peace-loving 
people,  yet  as  brave  as  they  were  peaceful,  and  the  spirit  of  Mason,  famous 
in  the  Indian  fights,  and  that  of  Putnam  of  Revolutionary  fame,  has  been 
transmitted  to  the  present  generation,  and  when,  in  1861,  the  hand  of  dis- 
union was  raised,  50,000  of  the  bravest  of  the  brave  buckled  on  the  armor 
of  war  under  the  Blue  banner  of  Connecticut,  and  later  swore  allegiance  to 
the  Government,  and  under  the  Stars  and  Stripes  went  forth  to  battle  to 
preserve  what  our  forefathers  had  bequeathed  to  us  as  their  richest  legacy, 
the  Constitution  and  the  Union. 

MR.  JOEL  BENTON,  a  descendant  of  Edward  Benton,  who 
was  one  of  the  earliest  settlers,  although  not  sworn  in  as  a 
freeman  till  1651,  made  remarks  and  read  the  following 
poem : 


204 

MR.  PRESIDENT;  AND  (I  want  to  say)  FRIENDS  AND  NEIGHBORS:  I  am 
limited,  I  believe,  to  rhyme  to-day;  but  I  ask  for  a  moment  to  overstep  the 
programme,  and  to  say  a  few  words  that  do  not  rhyme.  I  never  come  to 
your  beautiful  town  without  wishing  to  apologize  for  my  ancestors,  as  I 
think  they  would  like  to  have  me  do,  for  ever  leaving  it.  But  they  did  not 
leave  it  without  deep  regrets.  The  reason  for  their  departure  was  one  they 
would  have  obviated  gladly,  if  they  could  have  done  so.  They  went  away 
solely  because  their  estate  was  so  widely  scattered  in  detached  pieces,  that 
it  became  burdensome  to  do  easy  farming  with  it.  And  yet,  so  loyal  were 
they  to  this  commonwealth,  they  barely  overstepped  its  boundaries  into 
New  York.  By  going  into  the  famous  Oblong  strip,  they  found  land  which 
Connecticut  once  owned,  and  on  which  its  shadow  still  falls,  in  a  single 
compact  farm,  which  it  did  not  require  a  several  miles'  journey  to  go 
around.  But  Guilford  they  always  remembered  warmly;  and,  not  infre- 
quently revisited. 

The  church  in  which  we  are  assembled  stands  on  the  home  lot  they  left; 
the  well  they  drank  from  is  still  in  use  in  its  cellar,  and  the  upright  portion 
of  their  house  still  does  respectable  duty  here,  a  mile  or  more  away, 
though  they  left  it  95  years  ago.  And  to  us  who  descended  from  them, 
they  made  all  that  concerned  Guilford  forever  fragrant  by  pathetic  recital 
and  eulogy. 

There  are  a  hundred  things  more  I  should  like  to  say  in  prose,  but  I  am 
admonished  I  must  proceed  to  the  task  which  you  have  assigned  to  me: 

TWO    HUNDRED   AND   FIFTIETH   ANNIVERSARY    POEM. 

Two  centuries  and  a  half  have  fled 

To  the  dim  chambers  of  the  past. 
Since  our  forefathers — hither  led — 

The  fortunes  of  these  townships  cast. 

How  long  the  ceaseless  march  of  years, 

What  perils  on  an  untried  way, 
How  many  doubts  and  hopes  and  fears 

Formed  what  we  here  behold  to  day. 

But  they  were  men  of  texture  true, 

Of  virtues  stern,  in  action  wise, 
The  best  that  dominant  Europe  knew — 

State  builders,  heroes  in  disguise. 

Within  their  racial  lines  the  clew 

To  England's  high-won  rank  is  told; 
Under  this  sky's  autumnal  blue, 

Their  fadeless  history  we  unfold. 

We  little  know  what  pangs  were  borne, 
What  tender  ties  broke  when  they  came, 


205 

What  desolate  days,  what  sights  forlorn 

Frowned  on  their  path — which,  not  for  fame, 

Nor  brutal  deeds  of  high  emprise, 

Nor  wealth,  which  dreams  of  avarice  ask, 

Bore  them  beneath  barbarian  skies; 
But  nobly  did  they  do  their  task. 

Their  new  built  homes  the  savage  saw, 
Their  lives  they  held  within  their  hand; 

For  years  no  strength  of  arms  or  law 
Made  this  a  safe  or  happy  land. 

The  ravening  wolf  and  hungry  bear 
Hung  close  upon  their  daily  walk; 

Dread  danger  taught  them  to  beware 
The  scalping-knife  and  tomahawk. 

The  house  still  lives  they  built  to  make 
Their  refuge,  and  a  town  defense; 

O  may  it,  for  their  memory's  sake, 

Still  stand  unnumbered  centuries  hence. 

Men  were  they  of  a  lofty  strain, 

Picked  people,  hardy  pioneers — 
Of  all  who  dared  the  Atlantic  main, 

How  very  few  have  been  their  peer.s. 

Plain  planters,  used  to  daily  toil, 
Who  simple  lives  and  pleasures  chose; 

New  England's  cold,  unbroken  soil 
They  made  to  blossom  as  the  rose. 

The  tilth  of  England  never  bred 

Farmers  whose  skill  was  more  than  theirs; 
Men  who  in  townships  wiselier  led, 

Men  better  versed  in  life's  affairs. 

God-fearing  were  they — not  afraid 
To  show  their  faith  on  land  or  sea, 

Who  on  the  ship  their  covenant  made 
Of  brotherhood  and  piety. 

'Twas  this  that  helped  New  England  blood 
Mold  all  the  continent  to  its  fate; 

Each  conquering  cause,  all  schemes  of  good, 
Forces  which  make  a  nation  great. 


206 

Grew  out  of  thoughts  they  planted  here, 
A  torcli  that  lighted  Freedom's  flame; 

O  may  these  never  disappear, 
But  live  illustrious,  as  they  came. 

The  mother,  wife,  and  maiden  too, 

Shared  hardship  with  this  sacred  band; 

The  work  their  hands  found  ways  to  do, 
Has  put  its  imprint  on  our  land. 

Their  righteous  love,  their  tender  grace. 

Their  household  manners  rare  and  sweet, 
I  see  your  homes  in  many  a  face 

To-day  illustrate  and  repeat. 

We  could  not  — if  we  would — forget 
Their  matchless  service  or  their  worth; 

No  sun  of  hope  shall  ever  set 
While  such  remain  to  bless  the  earth. 

Guilford!    To-day  how  dear  its  sound, 

With  Madison,  its  next  of  kin; 
What  fairer  places  shall  be  found 

Than  these  our  fathers  entered  in  ? 

Two  centuries  and  a  half!    How  long 
The  backward  vision  spreads  to-day; 

No  gift  of  speech,  no  power  of  song 
Their  blissful  triumphs  can  portray. 

I  leave  the  tale  just  touched,  not  told, 

But,  while  the  sun  stands  in  the  sky, 
Their  history  never  shall  grow  old, 

Their  cherished  memory  never  die. 

GENERAL  HAWLEY  said  : 

That  he  felt  pleasure  at  being  present,  because  he  loved  Connecticut. 
The  nation  is  poor  which  had  no  historic  consciousness  or  traditions.  That 
was  a  poor  people  who  did  not  look  forward  to  a  grand  future.  Connecti- 
cut was  going  through  a  change.  The  experiment  had  to  be  made,  whether 
people  liked  it  or  not.  Our  ancestors  would  have  shivered  to  have  seen 
that  nearly  one  one-half  of  our  population  was  of  foreign  parentage.  A 
good  many  inhabitants  of  New  England  come  to  the  New  World,  not  for 
love  of  New  England  or  its  institutions,  but  to  get  a  living  more  easily. 
They  would  become  assimilated  in  time.  But  they  must  hear  often  of  the 
settlers  of  New  England  and  their  deeds.  "  I  wish,"  said  the  Senator  in 
conc'usion,  "  our  young  men  would  realize  better,  the  value  to  a  nation  of 


207 

state  pride.  The  history  of  Connecticut  is  not  paralleled  by  any  nation  or 
country  in  the  world.  For  250  years  this  state  has  been  a  free  people.  It 
has  been  in  the  front  in  all  matters.  I  want  the  young  men  of  Connecticut 
to  know  these  things,  and  to  know  that  all  the  time  there  is  a  demand  for 
the  quality  that  was  the  ruling  one  with  our  ancestors — absolute  patriotism. 
I  ask  our  young  men  to  believe  something  in  dead  earnest,  and  to  have  a 
purpose  in  the  world. 

HON.  ANDREW  C.  BRADLEY  of  Washington,  D.  C.,  a 
decendant  of  Stephen  Bradley,  1658,  said: 

This  morning  in  a  casual  look  into  a  book,  the  Life  and  Letters  of  Fitz- 
Green  Halleck,  I  happened  upon  these  words  of  Edward  Burke,  "Those 
who  do  not  cherish  the  memory  of  their  ancestors,  do  not  deserve  to  be 
remembered  by  posterity."  Their  peculiar  aptness  to  my  own  irreverent 
condition  of  mind  and  heart  toward  my  ancestors  prior  to  this  visit  to 
Guilford  was  somewhat  startling.  And  it  suddenly  struck  me,  that  for 
man}7  years  I  had  been  ignorantly  and  unconsciously  wandering  along  upon 
the  border  line  of  an  impending  doom  which  ere  long  must  have  overtaken 
me,  and  have  consigned  my  name  to  like  oblivion  with  my  posterity. 

Born  in  Washington,  in  the  District  of  Columbia,  and  associated  by 
descent  with  its  earliest  history,  the  occasion,  or  need  for  a  search  after  an 
ancestry  anterior  to  its  existence  had  never  arisen,  or  if  it  had  arisen,  it  had 
never  impressed  its  importance  upon  me,  and  I  have  lived  in  the  perfect 
contentment  of  the  faith  that  my  ancestors  were  respectable. 

Topsy,  a  character  in  that  remarkable  book  "  Uncle  Tom's  Cabin,"  when 
asked  who  made  her,  replied  that  she  "growed."  Had  I  been  interro- 
gated as  to  who  were  my  ancestors,  my  reply  would  perhaps  not  have  been 
quite  so  brief,  but  with  almost  equal  ignorance,  I  should  have  been  com- 
pelled to  fall  back  upon  the  general  right  of  ever}'  American  citizen  to  an 
ancestral  share  in  those  good,  noble,  and  devoted  men  who  settled  this 
country,  and  who  founded  and  established  upon  principles  which  have 
made  it  the  grandest  country  upon  the  face  of  the  earth.  Sucn  a  right  I 
should  have  been  compelled  to  claim  by  virtue  of  my  citizenship,  a  right 
which  every  citizen,  whether  native  born,  or  naturalized,  is  accustomed  to 
exercise,  upon  the  principle  that  having  purchased  and  acquired  an  inter- 
est in  the  government  by  his  citizenship  he  purchased  a  share  in  the  an- 
cestors with  it. 

Now.  however,  I  have  had  a  revelation  of  the  past,  and  of  my  relation  to 
it,  and  under  its  conviction  I  am  glad  to  cherish  the  memory  of  the  an- 
cestors disclosed,  and  to  claim  them  by  right,  not  of  purchase,  but  descent. 

The  dawn  of  this  enlightenment  came  in  the  form  a  kind  and  polite  in- 
vitation from  your  committee  to  attend  these  two  nundred  and  fiftieth 
anniversary  exercises  of  the  settlement  of  Guilford.  This  invitation  was 
extended  to  me  as  a  descendant  of  one  of  the  first  settlers.  It  appeared  to 
me  that  there  must  be  some  mistake,  but  I  came  here  with  a  mind  open  to 
conviction.  A  further  light  was  thrown  upon  my  benighted  mind  in  the 
information  conveyed  by  the  History  of  Guilford,  a  book  to  be  obtained 


208 

here  on  this  occasion,  which  contains  some  doggerel  rhymes  by  my  great- 
grandfather, Abraham  Bradley,  2d,  dedicated  to  Guilford,  and  to  Crooked 
Lane,  by  which  it  appears  that  he  was  born  in  this  town. 

More  light  came  to  me  in  a  visit  around  yonder  corner  to  a  spot  on 
Crooked  Lane  where  a  placard  marks  the  side  of  the  dwelling  of  Stephen 
Bradley,  one  of  the  first  settlers  of  this  old  town,  and  my  ancestor.  And 
with  all  these,  finally  and  fully  has  come  the  thorough  awakening  to  and 
realization  of  my  high  privilege,  in  the  kindly  courtesy  and  gracious 
hospitality,  which  has  been  so  liberally  extended  to  me  at  this  time  by  the 
native,  and  adopted  citizens  and  temporary  residents  of  Guilford. 

I  have  been  asked  to  make  a  five-minutes'  speech,  and  it  shall  be  merely 
a  greeting. 

Ladies  and  gentlemen,  fellow  countrymen,  and  kin  remote  and  near,  I 
glory  with  you  in  the  right  to  claim  this  noble  ancestry,  who  stood  for 
truth  and  duty,  for  home  and  family,  for  civil  and  religious  liberty,  for 
constitutional  government  by  the  people  and  for  the  people,  and  under  all, 
around  all,  and  above  all,  for  "  that  righteousness  which  exalteth  a  nation." 

[The  late  Rev.  L.  T.  Bennett,  D.  D.,  rector  emeritus  of  Christ  Church, 
Guilford,  had  prepared  the  following  brief  address  for  use  if  there  should 
be  occasion  for  it.  Dr.  Bennett  died  very  suddenly  on  Monday,  Septem- 
ber 2,  1889,  and  Mrs.  Bennett  has  kindly  yielded  to  an  urgent  request,  made 
in  the  full  confidence  that  it  expressed  the  feeling  of  this  whole  commu- 
nity, that  she  would  allow  it  to  be  published.  Both  the  act  of  preparation 
and  the  address  will  be  recognized  by  Dr.  Bennett's  friends  as  eminently 
characteristic,  and  the  man  himself,  as  they  loved  and  honored  him,  will 
almost  seem  to  stand  before  them,  as  they  read  the  last  words  written  by 
him  for  public  utterance.] 

MR.  CHAIRMAN,  LADIES  AND  GENTLEMEN,  YOUNG  MEN  AND  MAIDENS, 
OLD  MEN  AND  CHILDREN:  We  all  should  derive  benefit  from  this  notable 
gathering  in  an  increased  and  warmer  fraternal  friendliness,  and  in  a  more 
appreciative  estimate  of  the  institutions,  civil,  social  and  religious,  with 
which  we  in  this  land  are  s>  eminently  favored.  Other  men  labored,  we 
have  entered  into  their  labors.  Other  men  (our  forefathers)  forsook  home 
and  kindred  and  friends  and  native  land,  and  embarked  for  these  western 
shores,  hardly  knowing  whither  they  went.  Amid  weariness  and  painful- 
ness,  amid  untold  hardships  and  constantly  besetting  perils,  they  here 
planted  a  colony  which,  from  a  small  beginning,  has  been  fruitful  and  has 
multiplied,  until,  like  the  gigantic  tree  whose  boughs  reach  from  the  river 
to  the  sea,  all  peoples  from  every  clime  may  find  refuge  and  repose  under 
the  branches  thereof.  We,  the  descendants  of  those  brave  adventurers, 
have  entered  into  their  labors.  All  hail!  embalmed  in  our  hearts  with 
devoutest,  most  affectionate  gratitude,  be  the  memory  of  the  early  fathers, 
who  here  laid  the  foundations  of  the  goodly  heritage  it  is  our  precious 
privilege  to  enjoy.  And  all  hail!  worthy  sons  and  daughters  who  have 
here  assembled,  on  this  quadri-millenial  anniversary,  to  do  honor  with 
every  grateful  revering  demonstration,  to  our  noble  parentage.  Jttbilate, 
-  loria  in  Excelsis. 


209 

REV.  THOMAS  RUGGLES  PYNCHON,  D.  D.,  of  Trinity  Col- 
lege, Hartford,  a  descendant  of  Joseph  Pynchon  and  Rev. 
Thomas  Ruggles,  offered  the  following  sentiment : 

Abraham  Baldwin  and  Henry  Baldwin,  the  one  foremost  among  the 
framers  of  the  Constitution,  as  a  delegate  from  the  state  of  Georgia;  the 
other  one  of  its  most  lucid  and  forcible  expounders,  as  Justice  of  the 
Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States; 

and 

Their  no  less  distinguished  sister,  Ruth,  the  wife  of  the  celebrated  Joel 
Barlow,  and  recognized  as  the  most  accomplished  and  elegant  woman  in 
the  courts  of  Europe,  where  she  accompanied  her  husband  as  Minister  to 
France  in  the  time  of  the  Napoleon.  All  of  them  children  of  the  Village 
Blacksmith  of  Guilford  and  among  the  most  illustrious  of  her  many  dis- 
tinguished children 

Henry  Barnard,  LL.  D.,  of  Hartford,  representing  the 
Connecticut  Historical  Society,  spoke,  but  we  have  no  copy 
of  his  remarks. 

Professor  George  P.  Fisher  of  Yale  College  was  asked  to 
speak,  but  .the  hour  of  the  regular  afternoon  exercises  had 
arrived  and  he  declined. 


T.    W.    HIGGINSON. 


[Colonel  Thomas  Wentworth  Higginson  is  a  descendant  of  John  Higgin- 
sbn  (1641)  and  Henry  Whitfield  (1639).] 


FRIENDS  AND  KINSMEN,  FELLOW  DESCENDANTS  OF  THE 
GUILFORD  PIONEERS  :  I  come  before  you  as  one  of  those 
far-off  pilgrims  whpm  Mr.  Leete  has  just  described,  those  who 
have  gathered  here  from  Rome  and  Mesopotamia,  and  in  my 
case  from  Athens — the  modern  Athens.  You  who  dwell 
habitually  in  Guilford  can  hardly  appreciate  the  sense  of 
strangeness  with  which  we  wanderers,  entering  the  town 
to-day,  saw  the  date  of  erection  recorded  on  each  old  house, 
the  titles  of  the  old  streets  restored  and  the  very  dwellers  of 
two  hundred  and  fifty  years  ago  reappearing  in  their  names, 
inscribed  opposite  the  spot  which  was  their  dwelling  in  the 
flesh.  It  made  the  old  town  seem  like  one  of  those  ancient 
manuscripts  called  palimpsests,  on  which  by  chemic  art,  the 
later  inscription  is  effaced  from  the  parchment  and  an  earlier 
one  stands  out  restored.  It  recalled,  too,  that  suggestive 
legend  lately  brought  to  light  among  the  Mojave  Indians  that 
we  are  all  following  in  the  track  of  our  great-great-grand- 
parents ;  that  we  are  sure  to  reach  the  point  where  they  now 
are,  but  that  long  before  that  time  they  will  have  died  again 
and  passed  on  to  some  other  point,  so  that  we  never  really 
overtake  them.  It  certainly  seemed  to  me  that  as  I  passed 
the  point  where  the  name  of  Rev.  John  Higginson  was 
inscribed  as  residing  two  hundred  and  fifty  years  ago,  it  would 
have  taken  very  little  effort  to  perceive  the  form  of  that  rev- 


212 

erend  gentleman  disappearing,  with  his  bride,  Sarah  Whit- 
field,  on  his  arm,  round  the  corner,  and  that  I  was  nearer  to 
overtaking  him  than  I  shall  ever  be  again. 

The  subject  assigned  to  me  was  "Whitfield  and  Higgin- 
son,"  but  these  are  the  two  representatives  of  these  names  in 
whom  I  take  the  greatest  interest  ;  although  no  doubt  the 
paternal  Whitfield,  as  an  alleged  descendant  of  Chancer's 
sister,  affords  an  ancestry  of  which  to  boast.  I  remember 
well  the  day  when  I  first  visited  Guilford,  almost  a  boy,  and 
was  taken  by  its  eminent  antiquarian,  Mr.  Ralph  Smith,  to  in- 
spect the  ancient  house  where  the  first  wedding  in  my  family, 
on  this  side  of  the  ocean,  took  place.  That  wedding  was 
doubtless  a  most  important  event  to  me  personally — indeed  it 
is  hard  to  see  where  I  should  have  been  without  it — but  boys 
do  not  care  much  for  genealogy,  and  I  fear  that  the  historic 
fact  which  took  the  strongest  hold  on  me  was  the  assertion 
that  the  wedding  supper  consisted  of  pork  and  peas.  The 
tradition,  if  true,  is  still  of  value,  and  it  is  still  an  interesting 
question  whether  our  ancestors  would  have  bequeathed  us  any 
better  constitutions  on  a  diet  of  croquettes,  boned  turkey  and 
ice  cream. 

Years  after,  when  all  that  concerned  our  ancestors  had  as- 
sumed for  me  a  greater  interest,  I  visited  the  old  church  in 
Claybrooke,  Leicester,  England,  where  the  Rev.  John  Hig- 
ginson  had  doubtless  been  baptised,  where  he  had  worshipped 
as  a  child,  since  his  grandfather,  also  the  Rev.  John  Higgin- 
son,  had  been  "perpetual  vicar,"  and  had  according  to  tradition 
lived  to  be  102  years  old  and  had  been  drowned  in  crossing  a 
creek.  It  was  a  delicious  English  day,  soft  and  moist  and 
mild  ;  the  old  church  stood  amid  a  church-yard  in  which  • 
"  Gray's  Elegy  "  might  have  been  written  ;  a  flock  of  soft 
fleeced  sheep  nibbled  among  the  graves  and  sometimes  drifted 
noiselessly  within  the  open  church  door,  looked  about  with 
timid  eyes  and  drifted  out  again.  All  seemed  immeasurably 
old,  unspeakably  tranquil,  "a  haunt  of  ancient  peace";  and  it 
left  the  American  observer  wondering  more  than  ever  at  the 
powerful  magnet  which  drew  those  cultivated  families  out  ot 
those  peaceful  English  homes  to  a  stormy  ocean  passage  and 
a  land  where  pork  and  peas  were  a  wedding  feast. 


213 

But  if  we  go  yet  a  generation  further  back  in  the  family 
genealogy  we  come  to  something  which,  perhaps,  helps  to  ex- 
plain the  spirit  of  the  sacrifice.  The  mother  of  this  centen- 
arian clergyman,  one  Joan  Higginson,  dying  a  widow  about 
the  year  1550,  bequeathed  seven  pounds  per  annum  to  the 
poor  of  Berkeswell,  where  she  died.  The  family  record  goes 
back  only  to  her  and  can  be  traced  no  further.  Why  should 
it?  It  is  a  good  origin.  If  kings  and  queens  lay  beyond 
her,  any  true  American  heart  would  prefer,  I  think,  to  have 
his  family  tree  begin  with  an  ancestress  like  Joan  Higginson, 
widow.  She  did  not  know  what  the  modern  phrase  "  altru- 
ism "  means  and  would  probably  have  thought  the  plain  word 
"  charity"  good  enough  for  her,  but  it  was  the  spirit  of  altru- 
ism bequeathed  by  her  which  sent  her  grandson,  the  Rev. 
Francis  Higginson,  across  the  sea,  and  so  ultimately  secured 
for  her  great-grandson,  the  Rev.  John  Higginson,  the  privilege 
of  marrying  a  Guilford  wife  and  Parson  Whitfield's  daughter. 

John  Higginson  came  to  this  country  a  boy  of  13,  with  his 
father,  in  1629,  landing  at  Salem  after  a  voyage  which  the 
father  describes  as  "short  and  speedy"  inasmuch  as  it  took 
only  five  weeks  and  three  days.  They  made  land  at  Cape 
Ann,  and  the  boy  may  have  very  likely  gone  ashore  in  the 
boat  which  landed  on  what  is  now  Ten  Pound  Island  in 
Gloucester  Harbor,  and  brought  back,  the  father's  journal  says, 
"  strawberries,  gooseberries  and  sweet  single  roses."  The 
same  wild  roses,  fresh  as  ever,  I  have  myself  picked  on  that 
island  this  summer ;  roses  which  it  needs  hardly  a  flight  of 
fancy  to  call  260  years  old,  older  than  the  town  whose 
quarter  millenial  we  celebrate.  Sweet  as  those  roses,  single- 
hearted  as  they  were  single-petalled,  is  the  memory  of  those 
good  men,  our  ancestors,  whom  we  meet  to  celebrate. 

Francis  Higginson,  the  father,  died  at  42,  of  early  fatigue 
and  exposure,  but  John  Higginson,  the  son,  having  a  Con- 
necticut wife  to  take  care  of  him,  lived  to  be  92.  As  the 
readers  of  your  local  history  know,  he  kept  the  Grammar 
school  at  Hartford,  and  was  chaplain  of  the  fort  at  Saybrook, 
where  he  rendered  active  assistance  to  the  celebated  military 
leader,  Lion  Gardiner,  in  his  defense  of  the  fort  against  the 


214 

Pequots.  In  1641  he  came  to  Guilford  to  assist  the  Rev. 
Henry  Whitfield,  whose  daughter,  Sarah,  he  afterwards  mar- 
ried. In  1659  they  sailed  with  five  children,  intending  to  visit 
England,  after  the  death  of  Mr.  Whiffield  there,  but  put  into 
Salem  harbor  in  a  storm.  There  he  was  persuaded  to  remain 
as  his  father's  successor,  and  dwelt  there  until  his  death  in 
1708.  He  soon  achieved  a  reputation  as  one  of  the  most 
trusted  and  useful  of  the  Puritan  divines.  He  wrote  many 
sermons  and  prefaces  which  were  published,  and  he  is  pro- 
nounced by  the  critic,  Griswold,  to  have  been  "  incomparably 
superior "  in  literary  style  to  any  other  American  writer  of 
that  early  day. 

The  regard  of  his  parish  may  be  measured  in  some  degree 
by  the  scale  of  his  salary,  which  was  an  unusually  high  one, 
it  being  "^160  in  country  produce,"  which  he  was  glad  to 
exchange  for  ,£120  in  solid  cash,  and  this  at  the  time  when, 
as  Rev.  Mr.  Cotton  said,  "  nothing  was  cheap  in  New  England 
except  milk  and  ministers."  He  took  his  share,  doubtless,  in 
the  delusions  of  the  time,  abhorred  the  Quakers  and  pro- 
nounced their  "  inner  light "  to  be  often  a  "  stinking  vapor 
from  hell."  His  share  in  the  witchcraft  excitement,  however, 
seems  to  have  been  but  a  moderate  one,  and  he  summed  it 
up  as  well,  perhaps,  as  any  writer  of  that  time,  in  this  brief 
statement :  "  They  proceeded  in  their  integrity  with  a  zeal  of 
God  against  sin,  according  to  their  best  light  and  law  and 
evidence  ;  but  there  is  a  question  whether  some  of  the  laws, 
customs  and  privileges  used  by  judges  and  juries  in  Eng- 
land, which  were  followed  as  patterns  here,  were  not  insuffi- 
cient." 

Two  things,  however,  indicate  that  he  was  held  almost 
suspiciously  moderate  in  this  dark  matter.  One  of  these  was 
the  fact,  recorded  by  Upham,  that  one  poor  woman,  charged 
with  witchcraft  in  Salem,  showed  her  good  sense  by  protest- 
ing against  the  authority  of  the  judges  and  praying  to  have 
her  case  submitted  to  two  venerable  women,  one  of  whom  was 
Madam  Higginson.  The  other  was  that  Madam  Higginson's 
own  daughter,  Ann  Dolliver  or  Dollibar  of  Gloucester,  was 
charged  with  being  herself  a  witch,  though  never  convicted. 


215 

The  bearing  of  this  fact  is  in  Upham's  statement  that  it  was 
a  very  common  way  of  punishing  a  prominent  man  who  was 
suspected  of  lukewarmness,  thus  to  bring  the  charge  into  his 
own  family.  The  two  facts,  taken  together,  indicate  that  the 
Rev.  John  Higginson  was  in  advance  of  his  age  in  respect  to 
witchcraft,  and  this  may  have  been  due  to  some  saving 
domestic  influence  brought  with  him  from  Connecticut. 

I  have  said  that  John  Higginson's  salary  was  brought  down 
to  £120  for  the  sake  of  hard  cash;  and,  we  know  from  other 
sources,  that  hard  cash  sometimes  included,  in  such  cases, 
beaver  skins,  wampum  beads  and  musket  balls.  If  this  salary 
was  sometimes  paid  in  musket  balls,  he  certainly  gave  return 
for  it  in  still  heavier  ordnance  of  moral  truth.  Here  is  a 
sample  of  his  grape-shot :  "  My  fathers  and  brethren,  this  is 
never  to  be  forgotten,  that  our  New  England  is  originally  a 
plantation  of  religion  and  not  a  plantation  of  trade.  Let 
merchants  and  such  as  are  making  their  cent  per  cent,  re- 
member this.  Let  others  who  have  come  over  since  at  sun- 
dry times  remember  this,  that  worldly  gain  was  not  the  end 
and  design  of  the  people  of  New  England,  but  religion.  And 
if  any  man  among  us  make  religion  as  twelve  and  the  world 
as  thirteen,  let  such  a  one  know  he  hath  neither  the  spirit  of 
a  true  New  England  man,  nor  yet  of  a  sincere  Christian." 


THE    FOUNDERS   OF   GUILFORD,   OTHER 
THAN  WHITFIELD  AND  HIGGINSON. 

I?Y 

WILLIAM  RUSSEL  DUDLEY. 


[Prof.   Dudley  is  a  descendant  of  William  Dudley,   1639.] 


However  gratifying  it  may  be,  particularly  on  such  an  an- 
niversary as  this,  to  know  that  one  can  trace  his  line  and 
lineage  back  to  more  than  one  of  the  ancient  and  honorable 
covenanters  of  old  Guilford,  it  is  rather  as  a  representative  of 
his  class,  the  younger  generation,  that  the  speaker  was  not 
unwilling  to  come  back  to  Guilford  Green,  to  the  scene  of  the 
boy's  hidden  dreams,  and  say  what  this  younger  generation 
of  Guilford  birth,  name  and  descent,  thinks  concerning  the 
work  of  its  Puritan  ancestry. 

Although  bearing  but  a  minor  part  in  it,  he  comes  from  the 
turmoil  and  heat  of  the  characteristic  work  of.  the  age, — that 
of  Science.  Like  most  individuals,  the  world  only  does  well 
one  thing  at  a  time.  There  have  been  eras  of  great  poetic 
and  great  artistic  activity,  eras  of  great  architects  and  great 
sculptors,  but  none  of  these  terms  will  apply  to  the  present. 
We  can,  however,  say  that  Science  never  wrought  better  than 
now  ;  and  however  destructive  of  old  traditions,  of  cherished 
ideals  and  prejudices,  it  may  prove  at  times,  it  is  but  fair  to 
think  that  when  posterity  shall  write  down  its  judgment  con- 
cerning the  latter  half  of  this  century  there  wiirstand'forth  a 
philosophy  of  living  better  than  any  that  has  preceded,  be- 
cause it  is  written  in  broad  characters,  only  made'possible  by, 
the  fundamental  knowledge  of  material  things  brought  to 
light  by  the  work  of  to-day.  It  will  also  say,Jwe  fondly  be- 

NOTK.—  The  quotations  from  letters,  also  a  few   other  passages  omitted  from  the  address  as 
delivered,  on  account  of  limited  time,  here  appear  in  their  proper  place. 


2I/ 

lieve,  that  at  least  the  leaders  in  scientific  work  were  sincere, 
single-minded,  self-denying  men,  gifted  with  a  clear  sense  of 
duty,  aud  a  perception  of  the  value  of  absolute  truth  and  hon- 
esty, unsurpassed. 

In  all  these  things,  truth,  duty,  sincerity,  self-denial,  the 
builders  of  the  present  have  a  common  ground  with  the 
founders  of  this  little  republic  of  two  hundred  and  fifty  years 
ago.  To  read  then  the  noble  words  of  Whitfield,  the  quaint 
letters  of  Leete,  full  of  moral  earnestness,  honesty,  public- 
spirit  and  self-devotion — to  walk  again  the  paths  of  yonder 
Green  under  whose  sod  sleep  so  many  of  that  brave  little 
company,  ought  to  awaken  in  all  of  this  generation  a  pro- 
found thrill  of  kinship,  not  merely  that  of  blood.  Neverthe- 
less there  is  that  in  our  hearts  which  tells  us  these  men, 
or  their  leaders,  had  virtues  beyond  and  greater  than  ours,  of 
patriotism,  of  faithfulness  in  office,  of  primitive  religion, 
which  we  would  do  well  to  consider  at  this  time,  and  the 
memory  of  which  we  should  never  let  die. 

Can  we  now  for  a  moment  put  ourselves  in  the  place  of  the 
ancient  signers  of  the  plantation  covenant.  The  Autumn 
picture  of  the  vale  of  Menunkatuck  in  1639,  w^tn  the  brilliant 
tints  of  our  American  woods  flashing  for  the  first  time  on  the 
eyes  of  these  pilgrims,  has  a  darkened  background  in  old 
England.  To  you  has  been  pictured  the  extortions  of  Charles 
I. ;  the  crimes  of  Laud,  committed  in  the  name  of  religion  ; 
the  oppression  of  the  poorer  classes,  and  lastly  the  attack  on  the 
many  Puritans  among  the  middle  and  upper  classes.  Should 
they  resist  ?  They  were  doubtful  of  the  result.  Should  they 
submit  ?  Then  death  to  themselves  and  destruction  of  the 
liberty  which,  more  than  any  other  people  they  prized,  seemed 
inevitable.  What  did  they  do?  You  know  how  some  of  the 
best  blood  of  England  left  it  for  the  New  England  ;  how  Pym 
and  Hampden  and  Eliot  spoke  and  how  Milton  wrote ;  how 
secret  letters,  with  sentences  full  of  stately  maledictions,  and 
as  involved  in  construction  as  those  of  a  German  treatise, 
were  dispatched  to  and  fro  and  even  across  the  Atlantic.  It 
will  be  possible,  also,  to  imagine  that  every  Puritan  of  prom- 
inence in  Old  England  and  New  England  knew  every  other, 


218 

and  to  understand  how  many  and  how  strong  were  the  ties  of 
blood,  friendship  and  common  purpose  which  bound  them 
all  together. 

Rev.  Henry  Whitfield  was  a  valued  friend  of  the  Rev. 
Thomas  Hooker  of  Hartford,  that  profound  statesman  who  had 
already  expressed  in  a  sermon,  but  recently  brought  to  light 
by  J.  Hammond  Trumbull,  those  principles  of  government 
which  were  formulated  in  the  Connecticut  constitution  of 
1639,  "the  first  written  constitution  known  in  history,"  " the 
most  far-reaching  political  work  of  modern  times  "f;  the 
principles  which,  developed  by  Winthrop,  Leete  and  their 
successors,  were  adopted,  in  1789,  as  the  basis  of  the  Consti- 
tution of  the  United  States.  These  were  essentially  demo- 
cratic as  opposed  to  the  non-democratic  ideas  prevailing  in 
Boston  and  the  bay  settlements.  On  account  of  similar  lean- 
ings toward  a  larger  liberty,  Davenport  and  the  New  Haven 
Colony  had  been  drawn  to  the  Connecticut  region ;  and, 
finally,  out  of  the  yeasty  tumult  and  gathering  storm  in 
England,  on  what  day  and  from  what  port  we  cannot  tell,  on 
a  ship  whose  name  we  know  not,  departing,  no  doubt  with  the 
feelings  of  mystery  and  uncertainty  which  surround  the  soul 
leaving  this  life  for  another  world,  Whitfield  sailed  away  with 
his  little  company  and  sought  this  particular  shore. 

In  visiting  Ockley  in  Surrey,  two  years  since,  where 
Whitfield  and  some  of  his  followers  had  lived,  we  found  on 
the  Ockley  parish  register  (1600-1650)  the  Guilford  surnames 
somewhat  frequently  mentioned.  Besides  the  marriage  rec- 
ords of  Thomas  Norton  and  William  Dudley  already  known 
to  be  there,  the  names  of  Collins,  of  Stone,  of  Robinson,  of 
Stilwell  were  there  ;  and  through  the  courtesy  of  the  present 
rector,  Rev.  F.  P.  DuSautoy,  we  learned  of  Hubbards, 
Jordans,  Stilwells,  Stones,  Bishops  and  Chatfields  still  living 
at  or  not  far  from  Ockley.  All  of  these  names  are  among 
those  of  the  original  planters  of  Guilford.  From  these,  his 
parishioners  in  and  about  Ockley,  names  almost  wholly  Saxon 
and  perhaps  linked  with  Surrey's  soil  from  long  before  the 
conquest,  and  from  the  ranks  of  his  Puritan  friends  and  rela- 

*Alc.\ander  Johnston  :     Connecticut,  pp.  XI,  63  and  72. 


2IQ 

tives  in  Kent  and  Cambridge,  Whitfield  gathered  his  colony. 
What  must  have  been  the  spiritual  force  of  the  leader  and 
the  love  for  civil  and  religious  liberty  in  his  followers,  that 
could  draw  the  hearth-loving  owners  from  those  old  ivy-clad 
Surrey  homes,  or  delicately  bred  women  and  ambitious  men 
from  cultivated  English  society  to  seek  a  refuge  in  this 
strange  land!  And  here,  on  that  first  Autumn,  we  can 
imagine  the  late  rector  of  Ockley,  with  his  old  parishioners, 
looking  out  from  among  the  sturdy  white  oaks,  so  like  the  Eng- 
lish oaks,  perchance  from  some  gentle  eminence  near,  or  from 
the  more  distant  hill-top  eastward,  and  noting  the  low  moun- 
tain line  stretching  northward  ;  and  we  can  hear  him  saying, 
to  dissuade  them  from  their  loneliness  and  regret,  "  How  truly 
is  yonder  hill  like  Leith  hill ;  and  Albury  Park  might  be  over 
yonder  and  St.  Martha's  Church  farther  on.  Perhaps  some 
day  we  shall  find  among  those  hills  waters  as  clear  as  the 
'Silent  Pools' we  know  so  well."  Indeed,  the  view  one  has 
from  the  woods  near  old  Ockley  Church  is  not  unlike  the 
Guilford  landscapes  as  one  looks  northward  or  westward 
toward  the  blue,  basaltic  outline  of  Totokett  Mountain. 

Whitfield  in  choosing  his  men  and  location  showed  the  in- 
stincts of  a  leader,  and  the  following  seem  to  be  the  salient 
points  of  his  wisdom  : 

He  secured  the  companionship  and  aid  of  several  men  of 
good  family  and  education.  Among  those  were  at  least  three 
lawyers,  Samuel  Disbrowe,  William  Leete  and  Thomas  Jor- 
dan; one  clergyman,  John  Hoadley,  and  William  Chittenden, 
an  officer  of  the  King's  service,  probably  not  college-'bred,  but 
of  good  connections.  These  were  to  be  the  leaders  of  the 
colony. 

He  chose  for  the  remainer  of  the  company,  the  sturdy 
yeomen  or*  farmers,  and  others  over  whom  he  had  a  strong 
personal  influence  in  or  about  Ockley.  These  were  to  be 
the  stable  body  of  settlers. 

His  leaders  were  mostly  young  men  with  the  courage,  high 
hope  and  adventurous  spirit  of  youth.  For  example,  Hoad- 
ley was  23,  Disbrowe  24,  and  Leete  26. 


220 

When  they  afterward  chose  the  four  men  in  whom  "  full 
civil  power  should  be  vested  "  from  1639  till  l&43>  or  till  the 
gathering  of  the  Church,  we  find  him  following  the  adage, 
"old  men  for  counsel,"  for  William  Chittenden  was  45,  and 
presumably  all  were  men  of  mature  age  excepting  Leete.  , 

Whitfield  and  his  companions  clearly  saw  the  colonies 
where  true  liberty  prevailed  (in  Hartford  and  New  Haven), 
and  joined  their  fortunes  with  such. 

Lastly,  they  foresaw  the  disorganizing  influences  of  an 
isolated  life  in  a  new  and  strange  land,  and  probably  for  that 
reason  their  simple  Covenant,  their  first  colonial  document, 
was  signed  on  shipboard  by  a  large  number  of  the  company. 
This  is  an  oath  of  loyalty  to  their  enterprise.  It  is  a  signifi- 
cant fact  that  before  any  declaration  was  made  of  the  religious 
aims  of  these  Puritans,  before  they  had  landed  on  these 
shores  even,  they  taught  to  their  followers  and  their  children 
the  first  lessons  of  loyalty  and  mutual  helpfulness.  "  We  do 
faithfully  promise  to  be  Jiclpful  cadi  to  tlie  other  in  every  com- 
mon work,  according  to  every  man's  ability  and  as  need  shall 
require;  and  we  promise  not  to  desert  or  leave  each  other  or 
the  plantation  but  with  the  consent  of  the  rest,  or  the  greater 
part  of  tJic  company  who  have  entered  into  this  engagement" 
These  words  are  so  practical,  so  earnest,  so  simple,  that  we 
seem  to  be  back  again  in  the  early  morning  of  the  Christian 
Church. 

You  have  been  told  by  Ruggles  and  Trumbull  and  all 
who  have  written  since,  that  the  founders  of  Guilford  were 
all  either  "  gentlemen  or  yeomen."  This  remark,  always  re- 
peated by  their  descendants  with  ingenuous  vanity,  shows 
that  here  at  least,  the  waves  of  modern  commercialism  have 
not  swept  away  the  old  English  and  Colonial  feeling  of  two 
hundred  and  fifty  or  even  one  hundred  years  ago,  that  the 
possession  of  land  lent  to  human  life  the  greatest  dignity  of 
any  material  possession. 

But  setting  aside  this  traditional  classification,  it  is  still 
convenient  for  us  to  look  on  these  founders  of  our  ancient 
community  as  of  two  classes.  We  cannot  say  there  were 
those  who  fought  and  those  who  ran  away,  far  from  it.  But 


221 

there  were  those  who  remained  here  to  become  the  perma- 
nent residents,  and  to  leave  at  last  their  ashes  in  our  soil ; 
and  there  were  those  who,  after  the  advent  of  the  English 
Revolution  of  the  seventeenth  century,  returned,  from  a  sense 
of  duty  and  the  urgent  call  of  their  friends,  to  impart  life  and 
purpose  to  the  reorganization  of  society  in  England. 

Had  this  Revolution  never  occurred  Guilford  would  have 
been  a  far  richer  town  in  its  men  and  influence.  But  the 
return  of  these  men  to  England,  for  patriotic  reasons  it  is  fair 
to  conclude,  shows  the  purposes  of  Guilford  colonists.  They 
were  "ready,"  as  one  of  them  afterwards  observed,  "to  be  re- 
moved to  anyplace  whither  the  Lord  our  God  shall  call,where 
we  may  carry  on  His  work  under  our  hands." 

The  New  Haven  Colony,  excepting  Davenport  and  a  few 
others,  came  professedly  for  trade.  Massachusetts  Bay  Colo- 
nists had  developed  a  character  for  ministerial  domination,  for 
quarrelsomeness  and  persecution,  anything  but  enviable.  The 
Hartford  and  Guilford  Colonists  were  influenced,  it  seems  to 
me,  by  motives  worthier  the  apostles  of  civil  and  religious 
liberty.  The  Guilford  leaders  held  themselves  ever  ready  to 
go  or  come  at  the  demands  of  their  cause  and  their  country; 
and  it  is  indeed  doubtful  if  to  the  cause  of  the  Protestant 
Revolution  any  other  American  Colony  contributed  propor- 
tionately as  many  strong  men.  The  founders  of  this  town 
entered  early  into  the  privilege  and  glory  of  the  sturdier  races 
and  communities  of  the  world,  to  furnish  the  energy  which 
civilizes  the  waste  places  of  the  earth,  or  beautifies  and  adorns 
them.  England  did  this  for  Guilford  and  all  New  England. 
And  even  in  165 1  Guilford  began  her  long  career  of  giving  of 
her  best  to  other  lands.  Since  then  she  has  peopled  many  a 
town  of  our  own  country  and  sent  her  sons  into  the  working 
ranks  of  many  cities. 

Aside  from  Whitfield  himself,  the  representative  men  of  the 
group  which  returned  to  England  were  Samuel  Disbrowe  and 
John  Hoadley.  The  Disbrowes  were  well  born  and  high  in 
the  councils  of  the  Cromwellians.  The  elder  brother  John 
had  married  Jane  Cromwell,  a  sister  of  the  Protector,  and 
became  a  major-general  in  his  army. 


222 

Samuel  Disbrowe,  according  to  former  accounts,  came  over 
with  Whitfield  as  a  mere  boy  of  twenty.  It  is  now  known 
that  he  was  twenty-four,  which  seems  a  more  suitable  age  to 
become  the  first  Magistrate  of  the  Guilford  plantation,  an 
office  he  held  from  1643  till  1651,  when  he  returned  to  Eng- 
land to  rise  with  the  ascending  star  of  Cromwell.  Soon  after 
Cromwell's  accession,  Samuel  Disbrowe  became  Commis- 
sioner of  the  Revenues  and  Member  of  Parliament  for 
Edinboro.  Almost  immediately  he  was  appointed  one  of 
the  nine  Counsellors  of  the  Kingdom  of  Scotland,  and  soon 
after  the  Keeper  of  the  Great  Seal  of  Scotland — an  impor- 
tant office,  with  an  allowance  of  ,£2,000  per  annum.  In 
1656  he  became  Member  of  Parliament  for  Mid  Lothian  in 
addition  to  the  above.  He  seems  to  have  entered  with  zeal 
into  debates  in  Parliament  and  is  often  referred  to  by  the 
chroniclers  of  the  time  as  one  of  considerable  influence. 

It  has  been  ascertained  by  Mr.  Henry  F.  Waters,  that  be- 
fore leaving  America  Disbrowe  married  Dorothy  Whitfield,  a 
daughter  presumably  of  Henry  Whitfield.  And  from  the 
same  source,  we  know  Guilford  affairs  were  more  than  once 
through  him  laid  before  and  received  careful  consideration  of 
the  Great  Protector  himself.* 

In  our  eyes  Disbrowe's  later  career  is  less  heroic,  although 
in  no  wise  dishonorable.  When  Cromwellianism  was  swept 
away  and  Charles  II.  came  to  the  throne,  he  offered  pardon  to 
a  large  class  of  Puritans,  and  Samuel  Disbrowe  accepted. 
We  have  Charles'  letter  of  pardon  and  Disbrowe's  humble 
acceptance,  quite  recently  printed.  He  thus  saved  for  him- 
self his  manor  at  Elsworth,  and  died  there  aged  seventy-five, 
December  10,  1690;  and  the  Lord  Chancellor  of  Scotland, 
which  Guilford  furnished  Cromwell,  passed  away  therefore 
in  the  odor  of  sanctity  and  of  royalty. 

The  Rev.  John  Hoadley  was  perhaps  a  conservative  at 
heart.  Many  queries  arise  in  one's  mind  concerning  him. 
Was  he  of  gentle  nature  as  well  as  of  birth  and  breeding;  and 
did  the  wrongs  done  the  Puritans  so  fire  his  youthful  and 
generous  heart  that  he  sacrificed  all  the  charms  of  his  native 

*See  New  England  Historical  and  Genealogical  Register,  Vol.  XLI,  (1887)  p  336-360. 


223 

England  to  join  Whitfield's  Pilgrims  ?  On  the  other  hand, 
on  his  return  to  England  did  the  rampant  barbarism  of  the 
Roundheads,  defacing  ancient  monuments,  destroying  the 
highly  wrought  tracery,  the  noble  windows,  indeed  every- 
thing beautiful  about  England's  ancient  churches,  serve  to 
wither  all  that  enthusiasm  ?  It  is  certain  that  he  was  quite 
ready  in  [660  for  the  restoration  of  a  King.*  That  he  was  a 
man  of  lovable  nature  seems  to  be  proven  by  a  charming 
passage  in  one  of  William  Leete's  letters,  1654,  addressed  to 
Disbrowe  after  the  return  of  the  latter  and  Hoadley  to  Eng- 
land :  "  Pray  sir,  forget  not  to  show  love  and  helpfulness  to 
poore  brother  Hodley,  *  he  was  my  constant  Noc- 

turnall  Associate  whome  I  dearely  miss."  It  is  also  quite  in 
his  favor  that  on  the  voyage  to  America  in  1639  he  becomes 
enamored  with  Sara  Bushnell,  daughter  of  the  planter  Fran- 
cis Bushnell,  and  in  1642  marries  her.  They  had  twelve 
children,  seven  of  whom  were  born  in  Guilford.  He  was  one 
of  the  famous  "Seven  Pillars  "of  the  original  church,  was 
Deputy  to  the  General  Court  at  New  Haven  in  1645,  DUt 
does  not  appear  to  have  been  especially  prominent  in  Guil- 
ford affairs. 

To  those  who  like  to  trace  the  course  of  Guilford  lineage, 
it  will  be  interesting  to  know  that  through  their  son  Samuel, 
born  in  Guilford,  John  Hoadly  and  Sara  Bushnell  were  the 
grandparents  of  two  distinguished  prelates  of  the  eighteenth 
century,  namely:  John,  who  became  bishop  of  Leighlin  and 
Kernes,  afterwards  archbishop  of  Dublin  and  then  archbishop 
of  Armagh  ;  and  his  brother  Benjamin,  perhaps  the  most 
intellectual  ecclesiastic  of  his  century.  The  latter  was  a  pro- 
nounced low-churchman  and  vigorously  attacked  the  non- 
jurors  and  high-churchmen,  and  provoked  a  controversy  of 
long  duration  and  a  bitterness  most  surprising,  when  looked  at 
from  the  distance  of  to-day.  But  the  King  and  his  courtiers 
favored  him,  and  through  his  effective  blows,  the  powers  ol 
the  Convocations,  the  strong  machines  of  the  high-churchmen, 

*  Hon.  Charles  J.  Hoadley  has  interesting  information,  which  he  will  publish  soon,  showiug 
that  substantial  benefits  rendered  the  cause  of  Charles  II.  by  Rev.  John  Hoadley  were  remem- 
bered by  succeeding  monarchs,  and  in  part  account  for  the  peculiar  favors  shown  the  grand- 
sons of  John  Hoadley  by  royalty. — W.  R.  D. 


224 

became  extinct.  His  voice  was  ever  raised  in  behalf  of 
greater  liberty  in  religious  matters,  and  he  explicitly  denied 
the  power  of  the  church  over  conscience.  However  strong 
his  intellectual  qualities  may  have  been,  the  impress  he  left 
on  his  age  was  that  of  its  great  champion  of  religious  and 
also  of  civil  liberty.  He  was  successively  made  bishop  of 
Bangor,  of  Hereford,  of  Salisbury  and  finally  translated  to  the 
see  of  Winchester. 

The  great  bishop  had  two  sons,  John  and  Benjamin,  one 
a  physician,  the  other  a  clergyman.  Both  were  writers  of 
comedies.  Dr.  Benjamin  Hoadley  assisted  Hogarth  in  his 
"Analysis  of  Beauty,"  besides  writing  certain  professional 
works,  while  his  brother  composed  several  oratorios  and  edited 
his  father's  works.  At  the  death  of  these  two  sons,  however, 
the  family  became  extinct  in  the  male  line. 

Of  those  who  remained  in  Guilford  there  is  one  important 
element  of  which  we  can  here  say  little  that  is  specific.  They 
left  no  correspondence ;  they  entered  but  little  into  the  his- 
tory of  the  colony,  except  as  holding  in  democratic  rotation, 
its  responsible  offices  and  discharging  their  duties  with  ap- 
parent faithfulness.  These  were  the  main  body  of  planters, 
mostly  farmers,  some  of  good  family  connection.  They  were 
the  bone  and  sinew  of  the  settlement,  but  they  did  not 
direct,  although  they  modified,  no  doubt,  its  policy. 

Perhaps  the  best  representative  of  this  class  is  Lieutenant 
William  Chittenden,  a  former  officer  of  the  English  army, 
who  had  fought  in  the  Netherlands  and  who  was  a  brother-in- 
law  of  Whitfield.  Besides  the  military  leadership  he  held  the 
office  of  magistrate,  and  was  deputy  to  the  general  court  for 
many  years,  even  till  his  death.  If  he  had  any  choice  in  the 
selection  of  his  dwelling  lot  overlooking  the  silvery  Menun- 
katuck  and  its  meadows,  that  choice  shows  the  eye  of  the  old 
soldier  and  the  man  of  the  world,  for  it  is  the  most  charming 
of  all  the  Guilford  sites.  This  property  has  always  remained 
in  possession  of  his  family,  and  from  the  ancestral  home  has 
just  passed  away  one  of  the  noblest  representatives  of  this 
honorable  family,  the  Hon.  Simeon  Baldwin  Chittenden. 
Another  descendant,  fifth  in  line  from  Lieutenant  William 
Chittenden,  also  with  the  blood  of  William  Johnson  and 


225 

Francis  Bushnell  in  his  veins,  was  Governor  Thomas  Chitten- 
den  of  Vermont,  whose  son,  Martin,  was  also  governor  of  the 
same  state. 

We  regret  that  not  more  is  known  of  the  Francis  Bushnell 
above  named  ;  for  one  of  his  daughters  marrying,  Rev.  John 
Hoadley  became,  as  we  know,  the  ancestor  of  two  distinguished 
English  bishops,  while  a  second  daughter,  Elizabeth,  who 
married  William  Johnson,  was  the  ancestor  not  only  of  the 
Governors  of  Vermont  mentioned,  but  also  of  Dr.  Samuel 
Johnson,  first  President  of  Kings,  now  Columbia  College, 
whose  son,  William  Samuel  Johnson,  was  one  of  the  earliest 
to  move  in  favor  of  American  Independence,  was  a  member 
of  the  convention  framing  our  national  Constitution  and  with 
Oliver  Ellsworth,  Roger  Sherman  and  other  Connecticut- 
born  members  exerted  that  potent  influence  which  led  to  the 
adoption  of  the  Connecticut  idea  of  government  as  the  basis 
of  that  Constitution.  William  Samuel  Johnson  also  became 
the  first  United  States  Senator  from  Connecticut  under  the 
new  compact. 

Cornelius  S.  Bushnell,  whose  name  was  honorably  con- 
nected with  the  building  of  the  "  Monitor,"  and  therefore  with 
one  of  the  critical  moments  of  our  Civil  War,  was  a  lineal 
descendant  of  Francis  Bushnell.  What  name  among  the 
forty  planters  has  been  more  honored  through  his  descend- 
ants than  that  of  Francis  Bushnell  ? 

Time  fails  us  to  speak  adequately  of  others.  Samuel  Bald- 
win, the  blacksmith,  not  one  of  the  covenanters,  was  how- 
ever the  founder  of  a  sterling  family  of  Guilford.  He  was 
the  ancestor  of  Hon.  Abraham  Baldwin,  born  in  North  Guil- 
ford, who  was  a  member  from  Georgia  of  the  Constitutional 
Convention  and  often  called  the  "  Father  of  the  Constitu- 
tion ;"  who  was  also  the  originator  and  first  President  of  the 
University  of  Georgia,  and  for  many  years  a  United  States 
Senator  and  whose  brother,  Henry  Baldwin,  became  a  dis- 
tinguished Justice  of  the  United  States  Supreme  Court. 

Dr.  Bryan  Rossiter,  who  came  in  1651,  was  a  man  of  great 
force  of  mind  and  character.  His  vigorous  resistance  to  un- 
just taxation  largely  helped  to  bring  the  New  Haven  govern- 
ment toppling  over  into  the  Connecticut  Colony  ;  hence  his 


226 

motives  do  not  seem  to  have  been  appreciated  by  the  his- 
torians of  that  lost  tribe.  Through  his  daughter,  who  married 
John  Cotton,  he  became  the  ancestor  of  many  distinguished 
sons  of  Massachusetts. 

But  the  most  significant  name  in  the  annals  of  Guilford's 
Founders,  all  things  considered,  is  that  of  William  Leete. 
He  rose  to  the  rank  of  a  colonial  statesman,  and  with  Thomas 
Hooker  and  John  Winthrop,  Jr.,  had  a  large  influence  on  the 
political  development  of  Connecticut. 

Leete  was  of  good  family,  born  in  Huntingtonshire,  Eng., 
in  1613,  and  was  therefore  twenty-six  when  he  arrived  in 
America.  His  mother  was  a  daughter  of  one  of  the  Jus- 
tices of  the  King's  Bench,  and  Leete  himself  married 
Anna  Payne,  the  daughter  of  a  clergyman. 

He  was  bred  to  the  law,  and  it  is  related  that  when  he  was 
serving  as  clerk  in  the  Bishop's  Court  he  observed  the  cruel- 
ties to  which  the  Puritans  were  subjected.  Examining  into 
their  doctrines  and  practices  he  ended  by  adopting  their  be- 
lief and  resigning  his  office.  His  home  was  but  nine  miles  from 
Cromwell's  and  he  was  a  neighbor  of  Disbrowe's.  You  know 
well  how  he  was  the  most  trusted  lawyer  in  the'  early  colony. 
He  was  a  party  to  almost  every  public  transaction,  was  one 
of  the  seven  "pillars"  of  the  church,  was  Clerk  of  the  town 
for  twenty-two  years  and  magistrate  after  the  departure  of 
Disbrowe.  He  was  chosen  Deputy  Governor  of  the  New 
Haven  Colony  from  1658  to  1661.  He  was  then  chosen 
Governor  and  held  that  office  until  the  union,  in  1665, 
with  the  Connecticut  Colony. 

In  1669  he  was  elected  Deputy  Governor  of  Connecticut, 
which  office  he  held  until  1676,  when  he  was  elected  Gover- 
nor, and  was  reflected  until  his  death  in  1683,  at  the  age  of 
seventy.  He  was  for  forty  years  Magistrate,  Deputy  Gov- 
ernor and  Governor  of  the  Colony  of  New  Haven,  or  of  Con- 
necticut; and  Dr.  Trumbull,  in  his  History  of  Connecticut, 
says:  <l  He  presided  at  times  of  the  greatest  difficulty,  and 
conducted  himself  with  integrity  and  wisdom  so  as  to  meet 
the  public  approbation."  But  he  deserves  a  yet  higher  en- 
conium.  He  not  only  proved  himself  adequate  to  the  duties 


22J 

of  every  trying  occasion,  and  filled  faithfully  every  office  con- 
ferred upon  him,  but  he  showed  the  even  temper,  the  unerr- 
ing instinct,  the  foresight  of  the  statesman,  in  positions  the 
most  responsible  to  which  his  town  or  the  Colony  of  Connec- 
ticut could  call  him.  Slow  and  cautious  in  coming  to  a 
decision,  his  conclusions  were  unerring;  and  few  indeed  are 
the  judgments  of  Leete  which  the  verdict  of  posterity  has 
reversed. 

There  is  a  series  of  letters,  written  to  John  Winthrop,  Jr., 
and  published  in  the  Massachusetts  Historical  Collections, 
which  reveal  him  as  he  was  long  supposed  to  be,  not  averse 
to  the  union  of  New  Haven  with  Connecticut  under  the 
Charter.  .It  will  be  remembered  that  the  younger  Winthrop, 
able,  ambitious,  of  European  education,  admitted  even  by  his 
critics  to  be  the  "  brightest  ornament  of  New  England  Puri- 
tanism," and  at  that  time  Governor  of  the  Connecticut  Col- 
ony, departed  in  1661,  on  that  famous  mission  to  the  English 
Court,  the  result  of  which  was  an  historic  document,  the 
Charter  of  Connecticut.  This  Charter  was  drawn  so  as  to 
practically  include  New  Haven  within  its  jurisdiction;  but 
until  resistance  was  hopeless,  this  union  was  fought  by 
Davenport,  the  New  Haven  leader,  with  all  the  masterful 
energy  of  his  nature.  Between  Leete,  then  Governor  of  the 
New  Haven  Colony,  and  Winthrop  there  was  similarity  of 
political  aims,  and  throughout  their  long  careers,  a  cordial 
understanding.  Leete,  even  in  1661,  writes  the  latter:  "I 
wish  that  you  and  wee  could  procure  one  Pattent  to  reach 
beyond  Delawar,  where  we  (i.  e.,  New  Haven  Colony)  have  ex- 
pended 1000  pounds  to  procure  Indian  title,  view,  and  begin 
to  possesse.''  It  is  now  clear  that  he  with  a  few  other  New 
Haven  men,  saw  the  great  advantage  of  a  large  united  Colony 
over  several  petty  ones,  of  the  truly  representative  govern- 
ment proposed  by  Hooker  and  Winthrop  over  one  based  on 
church  membership,  and  quietly  threw  his  influence  in  favor 
of  the  union.  Davenport  in  a  letter  to  Winthrop,  June  22, 
1663,  condemned  Leete's  supposed  indifference  to  New  Ha- 
ven interests,  but  the  people  of  that  Colony  reflected  the 
latter  Governor  in  the  succeeding  year,  the  last  before  the 
consummation  of  the  union. 


228 

Presumably  the  most  trying  situations  in  Leete's  life  were 
previous  to  this  date.  In  October,  1654,  he  writes  a  letter  of 
extreme  interest  *to  Samuel  Disbrowe,  then  in  England 
loaded  with  honors  and  close  to  the  Protector  Cromwell.  It 
reveals  a  critical  period  of  Guilford's  history.  Leete  himself 
was  revolving  the  propriety  of  removing  the  whole  colony  to 
Delaware,  while  Cromwell,  consulted  through  Disbrowe  and  a 
Captain  Astwood  had  suggested  that  they  go  to  Hispaniola. 
There  was  little  or  no  money,  no  sale  for  produce,  and  consid- 
erable dissatisfaction  and  anxiety  prevailed.  Leete,  acting  as 
agent  for  his  friends  who  had  returned  to  England,  seems  to 
have  purchased  the  Disbrowe  estate  and  found  his  debt  a 
difficult  one  to  cancel ;  but  throughout  the  letter  he  remains 
stanchly  loyal  to  the  colony  and  its  best  interests.  He  de- 
sires particularly  that  "three  lawful  ends  be  obtained,  viz. : 
(i)  Your  estate  returned;  (2)  I  here  settled;  (3)  the  people 
here  more  satisfyed  with  me  and  their  jealousy  removed  of 
your  being  an  instrument  of  my  removall  from  them."  Dis- 
browe is  owing  a  sum  of  money  to  Dudley,  which  Leete,  as 
agent,  is  expected  to  pay, but  Dudley  declines  "composition" 
(or  settlement)  with  stock  or  corn,  "he  saith  he  had  rather  it 
should  lye  dead  on  your  hands  there  than  to  have  much  more 
here  as  things  stand."  Leete  then  asks  Disbrowe  to  obtain, 
through  a  brother  of  the  former,  the  sale  of  the  property  in 
England  belonging  to  Leete  and  in  which,  perhaps,  this 
brother  was  interested.  Then  he  adds  in  characteristic 
words  :  "  I  pray  carry  it  with  great  and  tender  regard  to  my 
brother  that  he  may  be  very  free  to  what  is  done,  for  I  would 
not  lose  an  inch  either  of  natural  or  Christian  love  and  affec- 
tion for  an  Elle  of  profit  or  worldly  accommodation." 

Not  the  least  interesting  feature  of  this  letter  is  the  sweetly, 
persuasive  way  in  which  he  beseeches  Disbrowe  to  write 
back  to  Guilford,  to  the  people  there,  assuring  them  that  he 
still  loves  them;  that  they  "in  an  aptness  to  have  harsh 
thoughts  on  almost  all  men  that  goe  for  England,  as  if  they 
regard  not  Christs  poore  people  here,  having  sought  and 
obtained  great  things  for  themselves  there,  might  learn  to  be 

*N.  E.  Hist,  and  Gen.  Reg.,  1887,  1  c. 


229 

more  wise  or  more  charitable  for  the  future,  when  they  see 
your  enlarged  love  not  only  putting  forth  itselfe  to  help  such 
as  come  to  you  into  Old  England,  but  also  to  seeke  the  uphold- 
ment  and  encouragement  of  them  whom  God  requires  to  stay 
in  New  England."  When  the  people  showed  jealousy,  "  in 
reference  to  the  good-will  you  showed  towards  me,"  Leete  had 
said  to  them,  "I  wished  some  mens  eyes  were  not  evill  be- 
cause yours  was  good  and  doe  professe  they  take  the  wrong 
course  to  settle  me  if  they  take  up  evill  surmises  or  cast  any 
aspersions  upon  you."  *  *  *  "  And  if  you  doe  anything 
in  order  to  my  settlement  here  be  pleased  to  expresse  your- 
self as  doeing  it  much  respecting  them  therein." 

The  incident  of  the  Regicides  shows  him  to  be  a  man  of 
great  courage,  prudence  and  genuine  diplomacy  in  dealing 
with  the  agents  of  the  King  ;  while  through  the  possible  dis- 
pleasure of  the  latter,  he  risked  his  own  life  in  tacitly  favor- 
ing the  concealment  and  escape  of  the  refugees.  With  the 
Rev.  John  Russel  of  Hadley,  who  concealed  Goffe  and  Whal- 
ley  in  his  house  for  many  years,  and  with  the  Rev.  John 
Davenport  of  New  Haven,  William  Leete  shares  the  honor 
of  having  saved  them  from  the  ignoble  fate  which  overtook  so 
many  of  their  fellow-judges. 

Throughout  his  published  correspondence  and  his  long 
public  career  in  the  service  of  Guilford,  New  Haven  and 
Connecticut,  he  manifests  a  wisdom  that  belongs  to  the  best 
of  statesmen  ;  and  we  are  tempted  to  think  that  a  wider 
sphere  would  have  found  Leete  equal  to  its  more  complex 
demands.  Toward  the  people,  under  circumstances  the  most 
trying,  his  temper  of  mind  is  a  model  of  kindliness  and 
judicious,  fatherly  care,  while  toward  his  friends,  such  as  Dis- 
browe  and  Winthrop,  he  exhibited  the  affection  of  a  truly 
noble  nature. 

We  may  regret  that  the  ashes  of  Governor  Leete  did  not 
rest  in  Guilford ;  but  he  died  as  Abraham  Davenport,  another 
honored  citizen  of  the  Connecticut  Colony,  wished  to  die  and 
did  die — "doing  his  duty."  The  cares  of  state  during  his 
governorship  of  Connecticut  kept  him  continuously  at  Hart- 
ford. There  he  breathed  his  last,  and  there  in  the  ancient 


230 

burial-ground  in  the  rear  of  the  First  Church,  lies  buried 
that  one  of  Guilford's  founders,  who  more  than  any  other 
gave  permanency  to  the  little  republic  whose  origin  we  cele- 
brate to-day. 

It  is  not  in  a  spirit  of  boastfulness  that  we  rehearse  the 
deeds  of  the  fathers  or  recall  to  you  the  garnered  honors  of 
their  early  descendants.  It  is  rather  with  the  expectation 
that  this  rehearsal  will  find  a  quick  response  in  the  hearts  of 
such  as  have  not  only  inherited  the  blood,  but  the  ac- 
cumulated conscience,  the  self-control  and  the  aspirations  of 
generations  of  self-denying  men  and  women. 

It  seems  fitting  therefore  amid  the  pleasant  reveries  and 
reminiscences  we  indulge  in,  with  the  questions  we  put  to  the 
past  on  such  a  day  as  this,  to  put  one  question  to  ourselves; 
are  we,  the  sons  of  these  honorable  men,  prepared  to  act  as 
promptly  in  relation  to  our  country  and  our  politics  as  they 
acted  toward  the  great  civil  and  political  questions  of  their 
day.  Whitfield  and  his  company  unhesitatingly  put  worldly 
possessions  and  personal  danger  second  to  liberty  of  con- 
science. Leete  perceived  the  inequalities  and  dangers  in- 
herent in  the  New  Haven  system  of  franchise,  and  the  weak- 
ness of  an  isolated  .Colony.  True  to  his  convictions,  and  the 
national  instinct  strong  within  him,  free  from  jealousy  and 
fear  concerning  his  own  leadership,  with  a  breadth  of  intelli- 
gence worthy  of  high  praise,  he  quietly  espoused  the  system 
— not  of  his  original  choice — whose  subsequent  endurance 
and  success  vindicated  his  sagacity  and  patriotism.  What 
evidence  have  we  that  later  generations  are  capable  of  as 
large  a  measure  of  self-sacrifice,  loyalty,  sincerity  and  public 
spirit  as  the  earlier ;  and  in  these  times  of  place-hunting, 
money-getting  and  personal  ambition,  are  as  ready  to  take 
like  steps  in  regard  to  abuses  growing  fast  around  franchise, 
public  office  and  private  enterprise  ? 

Yonder  simple  monument,  commemorating  Guilford's  citi- 
zen soldiery  dead  in  the  war  for  national  union,  shows  that  the 
past  generation,  our  fathers  and  our  brothers,  were  prepared 
for  the  supremest  moral  effort  of  our  century  ;  and  it  is  a  fit- 
ting coincidence  that  this  memorial,  on  your  peaceful  Green, 


231 

is  linked  with  all  that  is  mortal  of  Guilford's  founders,  the 
sires  of  these  soldiers  and  their  exemplars  on  the  world's 
field  of  duty. 

Sights  and  sounds  so  familiar  in  '61  still  recur  in  our  page- 
ants of  to-day.  The  beat  of  regimental  drum,  the  wail  of 
martial  fife  along  our  streets,  the  fast  thinning  ranks  of  vet- 
erans, admonish  us  again  of  them 

"  Whose  failh  and  truth, 
On  war's  red  touchstone  rang  true  metal, 

Who  ventured  life,  and  love,  and  youth, 
For  the  great  prize  of  death  in  battle; 

Of  them  who,  deadly  hurt,  again 
Flashed  on  before  the  charge's  thunder, 

Tipping  with  fire  the  bolt  of  men, 
That  rived  the  rebel  line  asunder." 

But  with  the  nobler  impulse  these  things  bring,  every  gen- 
erous heart  will  remember  that,  as  the  men  who  were  fought 
and  overcome,  have  become  the  loyal  citizens  of  a  reunited 
nation,  so  the  evils  fought  have  passed  away  ;  will  feel  itself 
quickly  stirred  against  other  evils  which  have  arisen  in  their 
place  ;  will  gird  itself  as  best  it  may,  against  those  tremen- 
dous ones,  perhaps  industrial,  perhaps  political,  perhaps  social, 
which  already  cast  their  shadows  before. 

"  New  occasions  teach  new  duties!  " 

To  perform  these  "duties"  will  require  not  only  all  the  bet- 
ter qualities  inherent  in  our  modern  life,  but  the  civil  and 
political  virtues  we  believe  our  fathers  had  ;  not  only  training 
and  habits  of  mental  independence,  but  a  distinct  moral  atti- 
tude toward  all  public  questions.  To  meet  these  "new  occa- 
sions" we  propose:  The  memory  of  the  founders  of  Guilford 
and  the  spirit  of  their  sons,  her  citizen  soldiery. 


Hon.  Charles  J.    Hoadley,  State   Librarian,  who  has  taken  an  interest  in 
the  celebration  and  rendered   valuable  assistance   in  several  ways,  calls  at- 
tention to  the  fact  that   Dr.    Rossiter  made  the  first  post  mortem,  that  is  a 
matter  of  record  in  Connecticut.    It  was  made  in  Hartford  by  Dr.  Rossiter, 
who  went  up  for  the   purpose  and  was  to  ascertain  whether  the  deceased 
had  been  bewitched.     On  Page  396,  Vol.  i,  Colonial  Records,  we  find  that: 
"At  a  Gen".  Assembly  held  at  Hartford,  March,  n,  i6f| 
This  Court  allowes  unto   Mr.    Rosseter  Twenty  pounds  in   reference  to 
openinge  Keilies  child  and  his  paynes   to   visit  the  Dep-Governor,  and  his 
paynes  in  visiting  and  administring  to  Mr.  Talcot." 

Mr.  Hoadley  writes:  , 

"There  was  formerly  a  doubt  whether  opening  Keilies  child  was  a  post 
mortem  examination  or  something  else,  but  last  winter  I  saw  the  original 
report  of  the  autopsy  by  Rossiter.  The  body  was  opened  at  the  grave,  and 
R.  describes  the  condition  of  the  organs  and  notices  the  absence  of  the 
rigor  mortis." 


DISTINGUISHED  NATIVES  OF  GUILFORD. 


JOHN    E.  TODD,  D.   D. 


[Rev.  Dr.  John  E.  Todd  is  a  descendant  of  Timothy  Todd  (1747)  and 
John   Collins  (1669).] 


I  hardly  know  why  I  have  been  selected  to  prepare  a  paper 
on  "  Distinguished  Natives  of  Guilford,"  unless  it  be  that 
Guilford  men  all  consider  themselves  distinguished  and  are 
too  modest  to  write  about  themselves,  whereas  I,  having  about 
as  little  connection  with  Guilford  as  I  have  of  modesty,  have 
not  the  same  embarrassments. 

In  the  year  1732  my  great-grandfather's  brother,  Jonathan 
Todd,  graduated  from  Yale  College.  His  diploma,  which  I 
hold  in  my  hand,  is  probably  one  of  the  oldest  Yale  diplomas 
now  in  existence.  In  the  following  year  he  was  settled  as  the 
pastor  of  the  church  in  East  Guilford.  This  office  he  contin- 
ued to  hold  for  fifty  years,  until  his  death.  Meantime  his 
younger  brother  Timothy,  my  great-grandfather,  having 
graduated  from  Yale  College  in  1747,  followed  him  to  East 
Guilford,  not,  like  him,  to  pray  for  the  people  of  Guilford  but, 
as  a  merchant,  to  prey  on  them.  The  pastor  had  no  children; 
but  the  merchant  had  many,  and  there  have  been,  and  are, 
many  descendants  of  his,  some  of  them  now  residing  within 
the  ancient  limits  of  Guilford,  and  all  of  them,  of  course, 
"distinguished."  Unfortunately,  however,  my  grandfather, 
having  established  a  reputation  for  being  a  brilliant  but 
somewhat  eccentric  genius,  and  having  married  a  beauty  and 
belle  of  East  Guilford  (they  are  all  beauties  and  belles  over 
there),  and  having  obtained  a  smattering  of  medical  education 


234 

in  the  office  of  his  elder  brother,  the  "  distinguished  "  Dr. 
Jonathan  Todd  of  East  Guilford,  finding  the  Guilford  people 
too  healthy,  or  else  too  well  supplied  with  licensed  execution- 
ers, emigrated  to  Vermont,  or  the  New  Hampshire  Grants,  as 
the  state  was  then  called,  and  did  not  return  till  toward  the 
close  of  his  life.  Of  his  children,  all  of  them  born  in  Ver- 
mont, only  one  settled  in  Guilford.  It  will  be  seen,  therefore, 
that  my  claim  to  be  of  Guilford  origin  is  of  the  most  shadowy 
kind,  and  that,  therefore,  my  ability  to  speak  with  impartiality 
of  other  "distinguished"  men  of  Guilford  is  not  to  be  ques- 
tioned, especially  as  I  am  under  bonds  to  confine  myself  to 
the  mention  of  natives. 

Circumstances  have  much  to  do  with  the  development  of 
talents  and  character  and  the  acquiring  of  reputation.  Great 
men  largely  owe  their  greatness  and  distinction  to  the  circum- 
stances which  have  given  occasion  and  scope  for  the  exercise 
of  their  talents.  Doubtless  their  have  been  many  as  great, 
if  not  greater,  who  have  remained  in  obscurity,  simply 
because  there  was  no  arena  for  them.  No  doubt  many,  if  not 
all,  of  the  Guilford  people  would  have  rendered  themselves 
"distinguished"  in  circumstances  favorable  for  it.  Fortu- 
nately for  me,  however,  and  for  your  patience  at  this  time, 
while  multitudes  of  them  have  made  themselves  respected  and 
honored,  there  are  not  so  many  who  have  achieved  more  than 
a  local  reputation.  Of  those  who  have  won  for  themselves 
wide  distinction,  some,  like  Halleck  and  Hill,  the  poets,  and 
Dr.  Jared  Elliott,  the  preacher,  scholar,  author  and  scientist, 
have  already  been  spoken  of  in  special  papers.  Of  a  few 
more  eminent  of  the  others  it  has  been  devolved  upon  me  to 
speak.  In  the  time  to  which  I  am  limited  I  can  do  little  more 
than  merely  make  mention  of  them. 

One  of  the  most  distinguished  natives  of  Guilford  was  Dr. 
Samuel  Johnson,  who  was  born  in  the  central  part  of  the 
town,  October  14,  1696.  His  first  ancestor  in  this  country 
had  come  from  Kingston  on  Hull  in  1637.  He  graduated 
from  Yale  College  in  1714;  served  as  tutor  in  the  college 
from  1716  to  1719,  and  was  then  settled  as  pastor  of  the 
church  in  West  Haven.  Soon  afterward,  largely  through  the 


235 

influence  of  a  clerical  friend  in  Stratford,  his  views  became 
changed,  and  he  felt  himself  drawn  toward  the  Church  of 
England.  He  resigned  his  charge,  and,  in  company  with 
Timothy  Cutler,  the  president  of  Yale  College,  and  Tutor 
Brown,  who  had  experienced  the  same  change  of  views,  sailed 
for  England,  with  the  common  purpose  of  seeking  ordination 
at  the  hands  of  an  English  bishop.  He  returned  with  an  ap- 
pointment as  a  kind  of  missionary  to  Stratford,  where  he 
built  up  a  flourishing  Episcopal  Church,  performed  the  func- 
tions of  a  priest,  and  maintained  lively  theological  controver- 
sies for  many  years.  But  as  his  flock  was  too  small  to  give 
him  sufficient  support,  he  established  a  school,  and  engaged 
in  the  work  of  education,  for  which  his  tastes  and  talents  and 
attainments  eminently  fitted  him.  It  is  on  his  work  as  an 
educator  that  his  fame  chiefly  rests.  A  great  scholar  him- 
self, he  maintained  constant  correspondence  with  other  emi- 
nent scholars.  It  was  at  his  suggestion  that  Bishop  Berkeley 
directed  his  attention  and  made  his  gifts  to  Yale  College. 
He  had  Benjamin  Franklin  for  one  of  his  friends  and  ad- 
mirers ;  and  Franklin  republished  a  system  of  morals  which 
he  had  constructed.  In  1754  Dr.  Johnson  assumed  the  care 
of  Kings  College,  or  Columbia  College  as  it  is  now  called, 
which  had  then  just  been  organized.  He  served  as  its  first 
president  for  nine  years.  Under  his  administration  the  insti- 
tution passed  safely  through  the  first  troubles  and  dangers  of 
such  an  enterprise,  received  considerable  endowments,  be- 
came firmly  established,  and  received  the  impression  and 
direction  and  impulse  which  have  made  it  what  it  is.  Wearied 
at  last  with  his  work,  he  resigned  the  office  of  president  to 
others,  of  whom  his  own  son  eventually  became  one,  and  re- 
tired to  his  old  home  in  Stratford.  In  the  following  year  he 
was  re-appointed  to  his  old  pastoral  charge;  and  he  continued 
to  hold  it  till  his  death,  January  6,  1772,  at  the  ripe  age  of  75. 
Dr.  Johnson's  name  has  been  somewhat  overshadowed  by 
that  of  his  more  illustrious  son,  Dr.  William  Samuel  Johnson, 
the  jurist  and  statesman.  But  it  has  a  great  worth  and  dig- 
nity of  its  own, — not  to  mention  the  fact  that  what  his  son 
became  was  largely  due  to  him.  His  scholarship  and  learn- 


236 

ing  were  abundantly  recognized  by  the  highest  authorities  ; 
the  universities  both  of  Cambridge  and  Oxford  conferred 
upon  him  the  honorary  degree  of  A.  M.,  and  the  University 
of  Oxford  gave  him  the  degree  of  D.  D.  The  influence  of 
such  an  educator  upon  the  minds  and  character  of  men  is 
beyond  all  computation. 

North  Guilford,  too,  has  contributed  to  the  cause  of  educa- 
tion, and  furnished  a  college  president,  who  was  even  more 
of  a  statesman,  in  the  person  of  Abraham  Baldwin,  who  was 
born  November  6,  1754.  He  graduated  from  Yale  College  in 
1772  ;  served  as  tutor  in  that  college  for  four  years;  then  as  a 
chaplain  in  the  United  States  army  for  several  years,  and 
finally,  in  1784,  at  the  age  of  about  30,  settled  in  Savannah, 
Ga.  Here,  partly  through  the  influence  of  his  friend,  Gen- 
eral Greene,  he  was  quickly  admitted  to  the  bar,  and  elected 
to  the  Legislature.  At  last  he  had  found  the  proper  field  for 
the  exercise  of  his  talents.  He  was  elected,  in  the  following 
year,  a  member  to  the  Continental  Congress,  and  served  for 
three  years.  In  1787  he  was  elected  a  member  of  the  Con- 
vention which  constructed  the  Constitution  of  the  United 
States.  Under  this  constitution  he  served  as  a  representative 
of  Georgia  in  the  national  House  of  Representatives  for  ten 
years,  from  1789  to  1799.  He  was  then  elected  one  of  the 
two  senators  from  Georgia.  And  this  position  in  the  Senate 
of  the  United  States  he  continued  to  hold  until  his  death,  at 
Washington,  at  the  comparatively  early  age  of  52.  While  he 
was  in  the  Georgia  Legislature  he  conceived  the  plan  of  the 
University  of  Georgia  and  obtained  a  charter  for  it,  and  was 
a  leading  spirit  in  its  organization.  Afterward  he  was  for 
some  years  its  president.  In  the  Constitutional  Convention 
of  1787  he  cast  an  important  vote,  making  a  tie  which  led  to 
a  compromise,  the  result  of  which  was  the  formation  of-  the 
United  States  Senate.  In  Congress  he  was  one  of  those 
who  voted  to  place  the  Capital  on  the  Potomac.  Throughout 
his  legislative  and  senatorial  career  he  was  consistent,  liberal, 
dignified,  and  patriotic.  He  was  held  in  high  honor  and 
trust.  Baldwin  County  was  named  for  him. 

If  East  Guilford  has  not  furnished  a  college  president  it  has 


237 

at  least  shown  that  a  man  can  be  great  without  a  college  edu- 
cation. Thomas  Chittenden  was  born  here  January  6,  1730. 
At  the  age  of  about  20  he  removed  to  Salisbury,  where  he 
remained  nearly  a  quarter  of  a  century,  cultivating  a  farm  and 
raising  and  supporting  his  family.  Here  he  exhibited  such 
abilities  and  character  that  for  most  of  the  time  he  was  made 
a  magistrate  and  was  often  sent  to  represent  his  town  in 
the  legislature. 

In  1774  he  emigrated  to  the  New  Hampshire  Grants  and 
settled  on  Onion  River.  During  the  troubles  of  the  Revolution 
and  the  long  contest  between  New  York  and  New  Hampshire 
for  the  sovereignty  of  the  Grants  he  was  more  than  once 
obliged  to  move  from  one  place  to  another,  with  much  de- 
struction of  property.  The  unsettled  times  brought  strong 
and  resolute  men  to  the  front,  and  Chittenden  took  his  place 
with  the  Aliens  and  other  determined  spirits  who  became  the 
leaders  of  the  people.  He  was  a  member  of  the  convention 
which,  on  January  16,  1777,  declared  Vermont  an  independent 
and  sovereign  state,  and  of  the  convention  which  met  in  July 
of  the  same  year  to  draft  a  constitution  for  the  new  state. 
He  was  elected  president  of  the  Committee  of  Safety,  which 
first  conducted  the  government  in  those  unsettled  times.  On 
the  adoption  of  the  constitution  he  was  elected  the  first  gov- 
ernor of  the  state  in  1778,  and,  with  the  exception  of  a 
single  year,  he  continued  to  hold  the  office,  by  continual  re- 
election, till  his  death  in  1797,  nineteen  years  later.  It  was 
largely  due  to  his  influence  and  management  that  the  contro- 
versies between  New  York  and  New  Hampshire  were  at  last 
amicably  settled,  and  Vermont  was  in  1790  admitted  into  the 
union.  At  times  during  these  controversies  feeling  ran  high, 
the  country  was  in  a  troubled  and  critical  condition,  and  only 
the  greatest  tact  and  skill  could  have  prevented  bloodshed. 
The  British  government  tried  to  avail  itself  of  the  contro- 
versy to  persuade  Vermont  to  desert  the  rest  of  the  country 
and  put  itself  under  its  protection,  but  the  Green  Mountain 
boys,  while  cunning  enough  to  make  good  use  of  every  imple- 
ment put  into  her  hands,  were  staunch  and  incorruptible 
patriots.  Governor  Chittenden  was  deprived  of  all  advan- 


238 

tages  of  education,  save  those  of  the  ordinary  district  school 
of  those  days,  and  always  professed  great  contempt  for  book 
learning  ;  but  he  was  well  acquainted_with  men,  and  had  a 
large  practical  education,  acquired  by  experience  and  study  in 
the  great  school  of  the  world.  He  had  also  native  shrewd- 
ness and  a  vast  amount  of  common  sense.  He  seemed  to 
leap  at  once  to  correct  conclusions,  without  going  through  the 
ordinary  processes  of  reasoning;  seeing  things,  as  it  were, 
by  intuition.  He  was  an  adept  at  reading  men's  characters 
and  motives  and  was  seldom  deceived  in  his  estimates  of 
them.  He  was  remarkable  for  the  quickness  and  accuracy 
with  which  he  read  men's  minds.  He  had  a  good  deal  of  the 
tact  and  many  of  the  arts  of  the  politician.  He  could  say  a 
great  deal  without  saying  much,  like  some  other  Vermont 
statesmen.  He  could  smoothe  over  things  beautifully,  when 
he  wished  to.  On  one  occasion  a  certain  man  had  been 
appointed  to  some  office  against  his  opposition.  Meeting 
one  of  his  opponents  not  long  afterward,  he  remarked  good- 
naturedly  :  "  So  A.  has  been  appointed.  Well,  I  really 
believe  that  he  will  make  a  better  officer  than  I  think  he  will." 
Governor  Chittenden  impressed  those  around  him  as  a  man 
of  decided  character,  strong  will  and  entire  readiness  to 
assume  responsibility  and  exercise  authority,  in  a  case  of 
emergency,  without  much  regard  to  red  tape  or  mere  forms. 
In  1794  the  celebrated  Samuel  Peters,  D.  D.,  famous  for  his 
History  of  Connecticut  and  entertaining  fictions  respecting 
the  "  Blue  Laws "  of  this  state,  was  elected  bishop  of  Ver- 
mont, and  a  fruitless  effort  was  made  to  get  him  consecrated 
in  England,  where  he  had  resided  for  twenty  years.  The 
agent  of  the  Vermont  Episcopal  Convention  finally  told  the 
archbishop  of  Canterbury  that  if  he  persisted  in  his  refusal 
the  convention  would  probably  choose  some  man  who  would 
be  content  with  a  consecration  by  the  governor.  Upon  this, 
Peters,  perhaps  making  a  bid  for  the  opportunity,  wrote  that 
"as  Governor  Chittenden  is  Chief  Magistrate  by  the  voice  of 
the  people,  to  whom  God  gave  his  power  to  elect  Saul  and 
David,  no  doubt  but  his  excellency  can  make  highpriests  and 
bishops,  as  well  as  Saul  and  David  and  the  kings  of  Sweden 


239 

and  Denmark  and  England,  for  Vermont."  There  is  little 
room  for  doubt  that,  if  there  had  been  pressing  occasion  for 
it,  Governor  Chittenden  would  have  consecrated  a  bishop  as 
expeditiously  and  with  as  little  hesitation  as  he  was  wont  to 
commission  a  justice,  but  I  doubt  whether  he  was  the  man 
to  consecrate  such  a  fellow  as  Peters.  Chittenden  County 
was  named  in  honor  of  the  governor ;  and  one  of  his  sons,  at 
a  later  day,  twice  occupied  his  chair  of  state,  but  the  chip 
was  not  so  large  as  the  block. 

His  name  has  been  rendered  distinguished  by  another  per- 
son. Simeon  B.  Chittenden  was  born  in  Guilford,  March  9, 
1814.  He  came  to  be  well  known  through  the  country  as 
one  of  the  successful,  benevolent,  and  patriotic  merchant- 
princes  of  New  York.  His  gifts  to  various  institutions  and 
charitable  enterprises  have  been  unstinted  and  munificent; 
and  in  these  his  native  town  has  liberally  shared.  The  new 
library  building  now  in  process  of  erection  on  the  Yale 
Campus  will  be  a  lasting  monument  to  his  liberality  and  in- 
telligent foresight. 

Guilford  has  produced  several  ministers  of  note.  Not  to 
dwell  upon  the  work  and  person  of  Dr.  Jared  Elliott  of  Kill- 
ingworth,  I  must  mention  the  name  of  Dr.  Bela  Hubbard, 
who  was  born  August  27,  1739,  and  died  at  New  Haven, 
December  6,  1812.  He  graduated  from  Yale  College  in 
1758;  five  years  later  went  to  England  to  take  orders  in  the 
Church  of  England  ;  served  as  rector  in  Guilford  and  Kill- 
ingworth  for  several  years;  then  as  a  missionary  to  New 
Haven,  (we  are  always  in  need  of  missionaries  in  New  Haven) 
in  the  employ  of  the  English  Society  for  the  Propagation  of 
the  Gospel  in  Foreign  Parts;  finally,  for  five  years,  as  rector 
of  Trinity  Church  in  New  Haven.  He  was  an  ardent  tory, 
but  so  discreet,  as  to  avoid  giving  offense.  He  greatly  en- 
deared himself  to  the  people  of  New  Haven  by  remaining  at 
his  post  during  an  epidemic  of  yellow  fever  in  1795.  He 
received  the  degree  of  D.  D.  from  Yale  in  1804.  His  son 
Thomas  became  a  noted  New  York  statesman  ;  his  grandson 
Bela,  a  distinguished  geologist. 

Rev.   Andrew   Fowler    was    born    in    1765,    and    died    in 


240 

Charleston,  S.  C.,  in  1851.  He  graduated  from  Yale  College 
in  1783  ;  became  an  ordained  priest  in  the  Episcopal  Church, 
and  served  as  rector  in  several  places  in  New  York,  New  Jer- 
sey, and  South  Carolina.  The  last  years  of  his  useful  and 
honored  life  were  devoted  to  missionary  work  in  South  Caro- 
lina. He  enjoyed  the  singular  distinction  of  presenting  to 
the  bishop  the  first  class  for  confirmation  that  was  ever 
gathered  in  the  diocese  of  South  Carolina. 

Dr.  David  Dudley  Field  was  born  in  East  Guilford,  May 
20,  1771.  His  father,  Timothy  Field,  had  been  a  captain  in 
the  Revolutionary  army.  He  was  fitted  for  college,  together 
with  Jeremiah  Evarts,  by  Dr.  John  Elliott,  the  East  Guilford 
pastor;  graduated  from  Yale  College  in  1802;  studied  the- 
ology under  Rev.  Charles  Backus ;  married  Miss  Submit 
Dickinson  ;  was  settled  first  in  Hacldam,  then  for  eighteen 
years  in  Stockbridge,  Mass.,  then  in  Haddam  again,  and  Hig- 
ganum,  and  finally  retired  to  Stockbridge,  where  he  died  in 
1867.  He  was  an  able  man,  highly  honored  for  his  character 
and  talents.  He  was  also  quite  an  author,  being  particularly 
interested  in  historical  researches,  and  at  one  time  Vice- 
President  of  the  Connecticut  Historical  Society.  He  re- 
ceived the  degree  of  D.  D.  from  Williams  College  in  1837. 
Distinguished  in  himself,  he  is  perhaps  even  more  dis- 
tinguished as  the  father  of  an  illustrious  family, — David  Dud- 
ley, Stephen,  Cyrus  West,  Henry  Martyn,  men  of  national 
reputation. 

I  must  not  neglect  to  mention  Rev.  Samuel  W.  S^  Button, 
for  a  long  time  the  delightfully  genial  pastor  of  the  North 
Church  in  New  Haven,  who  graduated  from  Yale  College  in 
1833,  and  received  the  honorary  degree  of  D.  D.  from  Bruns- 
wick College  in  1856.  His  death,  a  few  years  ago,  at  too 
early  an  age,  brought  grief  to  a  multitude  of  hearts.  His 
name  is  still  among  us,  "  as  ointment  poured  forth." 

The  name  of  Abraham  Bradley  occurs  to  me.  He  rose  to 
the  position  of  a  Deputy  Post  Master  General,  and  therefore, 
even  though  his  poetry  may  not  be  remarkable  except  for  its 
loyalty  to  his  native  town,  he  must  certainly  be  regarded  as 
a  man  of  letters. 


241 

The  name  of  General  Augustus  Collins  presents  itself. 
He  served  in  the  army  of  the  Revolution  ;  was  intimately 
connected  with  the  public  affairs  of  our  state ;  was  actively 
employed  as  a  magistrate  most  of  his  life,  and  served  in  sixty- 
four  consecutive  sessions  of  the  Legislature,  a  fact  which 
needs  the  explanation  that  in  his  time  the  great  and  general 
court  met  twice  a  year. 

The  name  oi  Dr.  Stephen  C.  Bartlett  suggests  itself.  He 
was  born  in  North  Guilforcl  April  19,  1839;  received  an  excel- 
lent medical  education  at  Yale  College  and  in  several  United 
States  military  hospitals  and  in  the  naval  service ;  practised 
for  some  years  at  Naugatuck,  thence  removed  to  Waterbury, 
where  he  died  at  the  early  age  of  40,  but  not  before  he  had 
become  eminent  in  his  profession.  His  restoration,  by  means 
of  skin  grafting,  of  a  scalp  which  had  been  torn  off  by 
machinery,  is  said  to  have  been  the  first  operation  of  the 
kind,  of  such  a  magnitude,  ever  performed  in  this  country. 

"And  what  shall  I  more  say?"  I  have  spoken  of  Abraham 
and  Samuel  and  David,  but  "  the  time  would  fail  me  to  tell  of 
Gideon  and  Barak  and  Samson  "  and  the  rest  of  the  "  proph- 
ets," who,  if  they  did  not  "obtain  kingdoms,"  "wrought 
righteousness,"  and  some  of  them  "  waxed  valiant  in  fight  and 
put  to  flight  the  armies  of  the  aliens."  But  I  dare  not  close — 
I  should  not  dare  to  come  down  from  this  pulpit — without 
some  mention  of  the  "  distinguished  "  women  of  Guilford.  It 
is  to  be  supposed  that  most  of  the  distinguished  men  became 
so  through  the  influence  of  their  wives.  Or,  if  that  is  stating 
the  case  too  strongly,  it  may,  at  least,  be  confidently  affirmed 
that  most  of  the  men  of  Guilford  would  never  have  been  what 
they  have  been  if  it  had  not  been  for  their  mothers. 

Miss  Ruth  Baldwin,  a  half  sister  of  Senator  Baldwin,  who 
has  been  mentioned,  married  Joel  Barlow,  the  poet,  states- 
man and  minister  to  France,  and  with  her  sister,  lent  grace 
to  his  mission.  I  noticed  that  one  of  the  speakers  revived 
the  tradition  that  Mrs.  Barlow  spent  three  months  in  study- 
ing grace,  so  that  she  might  appear  well  at  the  court  of 
France.  I  doubt  whether  there  is  any  man  who  has  been  here 
for  half  a  day,  and  most  of  us  have  been  here  two  or  three 


242 

days  at  least,  who  believes  that  any  Guilford  girl  ever  had  to 
study  three  months  to  acquire  grace. 

Miss  Lorain  Collins,  a  sister  of  the  General  Augustus  Col- 
lins who  has  been  mentioned,  married  Oliver  Wolcott,  who 
became  governor  of  this  state,  one  of  the  signers  of  the 
Declaration  of  Independence  and  first  secretary  of  state  under 
President  Washington,  and  shared  and  helped  him  to  win 
his  honors. 

Miss  Mary  Button,  a  sister  of  Rev.  Samuel  W.  S.  Button 
who  has  been  mentioned,  was  for  many  years  the  successful 
principal  of  the  young  ladies'  seminary,  known  as  Grove 
Hall,  in  New  Haven — an  institution  which,  when  I  was  in 
Yale  College,  was  considerably  more  interesting  and  import- 
ant to  us  students  than  the  college  was. 

Last  to  be  mentioned,  but  among  the  foremost  of  those 
who  have  reflected  honor  upon  their  native  town,  comes  the 
name  of  Miss  Harriet  Ward  Foote,  later  the  wife  of  our 
honored  Senator  Hawley.  She  was  a  daughter  of  George 
Foote,  and  a  granddaughter  of  General  Andrew  Ward,  who 
was  in  the  Revolutionary  army  and  rendered  substantial  ser- 
vice at  Valley  Forge.  She  was  also  a  first  cousin  of  the  older 
children  of  Rev.  Br.  Lyman  Beecher.  She  was  born  June 
25,  1831  ;  was  married  Becember  25,  1855,  and  died  at 
Washington  March  3,  1866.  She  was  a  woman  of  fine 
talents  and  culture,  large  heart,  and  uncommon  executive 
ability ;  became  her  husband's  secretary  and  confidential  ad- 
viser, went  with  him  to  the  war,  and  while  he  was  in  the  field 
devoted  herself  to  arduous  hospital  work  at  Washington,  and 
at  Beaufort,  Fernandina,  Hilton  Head,  and  Wilmington,  N. 
C,  everywhere  taking  the  lead.  Her  exhausting  labors  broke 
down  her  health  and  shortened  her  life.  In  the  later  years 
of  her  residence  at  the  Capital,  she  was  the  President  of  the 
Washington  Branch  of  the  Indian  Rights  Association, — a 
position  now  held  by  her  sister,  Miss  Kate  Foote.  She  pre- 
ferred to  devote  herself  to  unostentatious  benevolent  work 
rather  than  to  society,  in  which  she  was  well  qualified  to 
shine.  No  good  work  failed  to  enlist  her  sympathy  and  help. 
She  had  unusual  literary  gifts,  but  wrote  for  the  most  part 


243 

anonymously.  Her  death  called  forth  remarkable  expressions 
of  respect  and  affection,  especially  from  the  veteran  soldiers 
of  the  Republic.  The  Grand  Army  posts  at  Washington 
sent  a  wreath  of  flowers  for  her  casket,  members  of  the 
Union  League  Club  escorted  it  across  New  York  City,  two 
posts  attended  the  funeral  at  Hartford,  and  the  Seventh  Con- 
necticut Regiment  of  veterans,  which  her  hushand  had 
formerly  commanded,  sent  a  mass  of  flowers  to  adorn  her 
coffin,  which  was  appropriately  draped  with  United  States 
flags,  in  token  of  her  having  become  a  daughter  of  the  army, 
and  of  the  country.  It  has  been  suggested  that  her  name  be 
placed  on  yonder  soldiers'  monument,  encircled  with  the  oak 
wreath  with  which  the  ancient  Romans  were  wont  to  honor 
one  who  had  saved  the  life  of  a  citizen,  and  it  is  to  be  hoped 
that  the  suggestion  will  speedily  be  carried  into  effect. 

I  am  admonished  that  I  must  not  detain  you  longer  among 
these  footsteps  of  the  living  and  sacred  urns  of  the  dead. 
There  are  many  other  names  which  are  deserving  of  honor- 
able mention,  quite  as  much  so  as  some  of  those  which  I  have 
recalled  ;  but  I  must  pass  them  by  in  silence.  They  will  not, 
however,  on  that  account  be  forgotten.  They  will  live  in 
history,  in  local  traditions,  among  household  words,  and  in  the 
tender  recollections  of  loving  hearts.  Their  memory  and 
influence,  fortunately,  do  not  depend  upon  mention  in  this 
slight  sketch.  Men's  own  deeds,  and  not  the  pens  of  histor- 
ians, are  what  give  them  immortality.  Let  us  endeavor  to  be 
worthy  of  the  great  and  noble  and  good  who  have  gone  before 
us,  and  so  to  serve  our  fellow-men,  our  country,  and  our  God, 
that,  long  after  we  are  gone,  our  names  shall  linger  like  music, 
our  influence  like  perfume,  where  we  have  lived,  and  some- 
thing shall  have  been  added  to  by  us,  however  slight,  to  the 
undying  glory  of  New  England  and  her  ancient  towns. 


HISTORIC  SITES  MARKED  AT  THE  QUARTO- 
MILLENNIAL  CELEBRATION. 


ORIGINAL  PLANTERS  AND  THEIR  HOUSES,   AS 
NEARLY  AS  CAN    BE  ASCERTAINED. 


George  Chatfield, 
Rev.  Henry  Whitfield, 
Jasper  Stillwell, 
Thomas  Chatfield, 
Thomas  Relf, 
William  Plaine, 
Thomas  Belts, 
John  Sheather, 
Mr.  John  Jordan, 
John  Stone, 
Rev.  John  Higginson, 
Samuel  Desbrough, 
Richard  Hues, 
Francis  Chatfield, 
Dea.  George  Bartlett, 
Henry  Goldham, 
Thomas  French, 
Edward  Benton, 
Mr.  John  Hoadley, 
Mr.  Jacob  Sheafe, 
Mr.  William  Chittenden, 
Gov.  William  Leete, 
Robert  Kitchel, 
Francis  Bushnell,  Jr., 
Mr.  John  Caffinch, 
Francis  Bushnell,  Sr., 
William  Dudley, 
John  Stevens, 
Thomas  Cook, 
William  Stone, 
William  Barnes, 
Mr.  Abraham  Crittenden, 


Capt.  James  Frisbie, 

"  The  Stone  House," 

Miss  Kate  Hunt, 

J.  Meigs  Hand, 

Mrs.  Knowles, 

George  S.  Davis, 

J.  S.  Elliott, 

William  Kelsey, 

Elisha  Hart, 

Dr.  Alvan  Talcott, 

Lewis  Elliott, 

Capt.  William  C.  Dudley, 

James  Dudley, 

Frog  Pond  Cottage, 

Hotel, 

William  Isbell, 

H.  W.  Chittenden, 

Miss  Lydia  D.  Chittenden, 

Edwin  Griswold, 

John  Hubbard, 

S.  B.  Chittenden, 

William  L.  Stone, 

Mrs.  Hannah  Brown, 

George  Spencer, 

Edwin  Leete, 

Dr.  G.  P.  Reynolds, 

Benjamin  West, 

Dea.  Albert  Dowd, 

Douglas  Loper, 

Charles  Stone, 

Guilford  Institute, 

Capt.  Tyler, 


245 

Thomas  Jordan,  Miss  Clara  Sage, 

John  Parmelee,  First  Church, 

John  Mepham,  Mrs.  Monroe, 

Henry  Doude,  John  Benton, 

Thomas  Norton,  Partridge  House, 

William  Hall,  Hinckley  House, 

Henry  Kingsnorth,  Grace  Starr, 

Richard  Guttridge,  Charles  Leete, 

Benjamin  Wright,  Capt.  R.  L.  Fowler, 

William  Love,  Miss  Harriet  Hall, 

William  Boreman,  Mrs.  Augustus  Hall, 

John  Parmelee,  Jr.,  William  Benton, 

John  Scranton,  L.  L.  Rowland, 

Alexander  Chalker,  John  Benton, 

Stephen  Bradley,  Henry  Chamberlain, 

Thomas  Jones,  Mrs.  L.  H.  Steiner, 

John  Bishop,  Mrs.  T.  H.  Landon. 

OTHER    SITES    MARKED. 

First  Meeting  House,  1643 — North  end  of  Green. 

Second  Meeting  House,  1712 — North  end  of  Green. 

Academy — West  side  of  Green. 

First  Episcopal  Church,  1747 — South  end  of  Green. 

Old  Town  House,  1775 — Church  Street. 

First  Sabbath  Day  Houses — Mrs.  Franklin  C.  Phelps. 

Site  of  Fourth  Church,  1730— Edward  Griswold. 

Residence  of  Fitz-Greene  Halleck — Hotel. 

Residence  of  George  Hill,  1796 — Misses  Belts. 

Birthplace  of  Rev.  Samuel  Johnson,    D.  D.,  first   President  of  Columbia 

College,  1696 — George  Spencer. 
Residence  of  Bryan  Rossiter,  first  Physician   in  Connecticut,  1651 — Capt. 

William  C.  Dudley. 
Residence  of  Rev.  Lyman  Beecher,  1795 — First  Church. 

(The  clock  in  this  church,  made  1726,  is  the  oldest  in  New  England.) 
Residence  of  Gen.  Andrew  Ward,  1776 — Mrs.  L.  H.  Steiner. 
First  Tavern  in  Guilford,  1645 — Charles  Stone. 
Birthplace  of  Fitz-Greene  Halleck,  1790 — Henry  Hale. 
Rev.  Joseph  Eliot's  Residence,  1664 — Lewis  R.  Elliott. 
Petticoat  Lane — Fair  Street. 
Crooked  Lane — State  Street. 
South  Lane— Whitfield  Street. 
Disbrow's  Lane — Water  Street. 
Mill  Lane — York  Street. 


246 
OLD    HOUSES. 


The, following  is  a  list  of  all  houses  known  to  be  100  years 
old  now  standing  in  either  Guilford  or  Madison.  Those  in 
the  Borough  of  Guilford  were  marked  at  the  celebration. 

GUILFORD. 

BOROUGH. 

Whitfield  Street— Mrs.  Sarah  B.  Cone  (Wnitfield  House),      - 

John  S.  Elliott  (Old  Graves  House), 

Lewis  R.  Elliott, 

Lewis  R.  Elliott  (Corner  House), 

William  S.  Kelsey  (Hooker  Bartlett  Place). 

George  C.  Kimberly, 

Mrs.  Knowles,      -  -, 

Samuel  Weld,  ... 

Darwin  N.  Benton  (Hotel), 

L.  Harting  (Capt.  Joel  Griffing  Place), 

Mrs.  William  Isbell  (Woodward  House), 

Dr.  William  Reynolds  (H.  W.  Chittenden  House), 

Mrs.  Fannie  Baylies  (Amos  Seward  House),     - 
Broad  Street — Leverett  C.  Stone  (Timothy  Stone  House), 

Leverett  C.  Stone  (Reuben  Stone  House), 

John  Hubbard,  ------ 

Miss  Clara  Sage  (Old  Tuttle  House),     - 

Miss  Mary  Smith  (Taber  Smith  House), 

George  Spencer  (Faulkner  House), 
Fair  Street— Benjamin  West  (Russell  Frisbie  House), 

George  B.  Spencer  (Joel  Fowler  Place), 

George  W.  Davis,       -  - 

George  M.  Seward,  --.... 

Mrs.  Mary  Galvin,      ---... 

A.  B.  Palmer  (Benton  House),  - 

Mrs.  Gilbert  Richardson,       ----- 

Edward  M.  Leete  (Stewart  Frisbie  Place),         ... 

Mrs.  Daniel  Hubbard,  - 

Charles  Stone,       ------- 

Edward  Long,  (Major  Johnson  House),        ... 
York  Street — Henry  P.  Robinson,         - 

Miss  Clarissa  Chittenden,      - 

Mrs.  Jared  Parker  ^Cruttenden  House),  ... 

William  N.  Norton  (Shelley  House),  ... 

William  Spencer,  -  -  -  -  .  . 

Harvey  W.  Leete  (Morris  Leete  House),      - 


247 

West  Side — Henry  D.  Chittenden,        ...  -       1739 

State  Street— Henry  Chamberlain,  -  1735 

Samuel  Dolph,  .  .  1784 

William  Weld  ...  .  I75g 

John  Benton  (Anne  Kimberley  House),  -  -  1740 

Mrs.  Edward  R.  Benton,  -  ...  1775 

L.  L.  Rowland  (Henry  Scranton  House),  -  -  1780 

William  A.  Benton  (Seymour  Benton  House),  -  -  1736 
Charles  F.  Leete  (Grace  Starr  House),  ...  1687 

Mrs.  George  M.  Bartholomew  (Abraham  Fowler  House),  -  1777 
Miss  Lizzie  Hall  (Titus  Hall  House,  built  by  James  Hall),  -  1696 

John  Starr,  -  1764 
Philo  Bishop,  -  ...  1671 

Henry  Starr,  -  -  .  1770 

Union  Street — Abraham  Kimberly,  -  1732 

Milo  Cook  (Collins  Place),  -  1700 

Park  Street — Mrs.  Thomas  H.  Landon,  -  1780 

Mrs.  Beverly  Monroe  (Charles  Fowler  House),  -  1735 

Daniel  P.  Augur,  -  1750 

Boston  Street — Hiram  Thomas  (Erastus  Page  House),  -  1783 

Alpha  Morse  (Old  Burgis  Place),  -  1742 

John  Yale  (John  Burgis  Place),  1786 

W.  W.  Bartholomew  (George  Griswold  Place),  1774 

Charles  Lathrop  (Clara  Caldwell  House),  -  1760 

Mrs.  Walter  P.  Munger  (Jason  Seward  House),  -  1769 

J.  Tuttle  Wildman,  1720 

Mrs.  William  Holcombe  (Whedon  House),  -  1763 

Mrs.  Samuel  Landon,  173° 

Misses  Betts  (Hill  Place),  1744 

George  S.  Davis  (William  Griffing  House),  1743 

Water  Street — Daniel  Sullivan,  -  I7?8 

Mrs.  G.  P.  Reynolds  (Nettleton  House),  1748 

Darwin  N.  Benton,  *735 

Mrs.  Mack,  1765 

Deacon  Leverett  Griswold,  -  173° 

MOOSE  HILL. 
Mrs.  Alvah  G.  Brewer, 
Richard  T.  Kelsey, 

Wallace  G.  Fowler,  -  1765 

Frederick  E.  Norton,  1725 

WEST    SIDE. 

Henry  R.  Spencer,  i?oo 

William  N.  Norton,         -  - 
William  N.  Norton, 

Mrs.  Virgil  S.  Hotchkiss,  1765 


248 


Henry  Fowler, 

LONG    HILL. 

S.  L.  Darrow, 
[ames  E.  Lee, 


E.  Walter  Leete, 
Mrs.  James  M.  Hunt, 


LEETE'S  ISLAND. 


NUT    PLAINS. 


Albert  II.  Phelps,  - 

Nathaniel  Evarts'  Heirs, 

Joseph  Wyatt       -  - 

U.  N.  Parmelee's  Heirs,  I75O 

Mrs.  William   Griswold,  -       1745 

Joseph  A.  Evarts,  I73S 

James  D.  Hall,    -  -       I74O 

Dr.  N.  Gregory  Hall,  1740 

Deacon  Edwin  O.  Davis,  -       174° 

E.  Roger  Davis,  I75O 

MULBERRY. 

Mrs.  George  A.  Foote,  -  -       *723 

SACHEM'S  HEAD. 
Samuel  P.  Barker,     -  ...  1730 


OLD   HOUSES   IN  MADISON. 

HAMMONASSETT    DISTRICT. 

James  H.  Bradley,  (Nathan  Bradley  House),  -       1680 

Dr.  Reynold  Webb  (Built  by  Daniel  Meigs),  *  175° 

Edward  Hand  (The  Hand  Homestead),  -       i7°4 

George  Willard,  (Elizur  Willard  House),                -  1764 

Thomas  Pendelow  (Ebenexer  Dowd  House),  -       1788 

BOSTON    STREET    DISTRICT. 

William  F.  Bradley,        -.-....  1770 

Mrs.  P.  A.  Scranton  (Captain  Griffin  House),        ...  1759 

J.  W.  Tucker  (Built  by  a  Blatchley),    -             -             -             -  -       1760 


249 

C.  S.  Bushnell  (Ellis  House),  1739 

P.  C.  Vogel  (Joseph  Hand  House),  -       1730 

William  H.  Petrie,    -            -                         -  1780 

Charles  M.  Miner  (Wilcox  Tavern),      -            -  -       1785 

Daniel  Hand  (Dea.  Meigs  House),                           ...  1740 

E.  J.  Bishop  (Old  Meigs  House),  -            -       1690 

Lafayette  spent  a  night  here  during  the  Revolution. 

John  Griswold,                        -            -                         ...  1780 

CENTER    DISTRICT. 

Capt.  S.  S.  Meigs  (Built  by  Dea.  John  French),  -       1675 

Mrs.  Mary  G.  Redfield  (Built  by  Dea.  John  Graves),  -                         1680 
George  A.  Wilcox  (Dudley  House),      -----       1740 

Joseph  S.  Scranton,  -                         1750 

Henry  B.  Wilcox,  -       1788 

Talcott  Bradley  House,         -                                      -  1760 

Rev.  Dr.  Elliott  House,                                                    -  -       1789 

NECK    DISTRICT. 

Seth  Stone  House,     -  1769 

Mrs.  Lucinda  Smith  (Built  by  Geoffrey  Smith),  -       1777 

Romeo  E.  Bassett  (in  family  for  six  generations  of  Bassetts),      -  1680 

S.  S.  Shelley  (Built  by  John  Stone),      -  -       1730 

Miss  Jane  Shelley  (Built  by  John  Shelley),  1760 

James  Harrison  (House  built  by  Jesse  Munger),          -  -       1772 

H.  P.  Coolidge  (Built  by  Thomas  Wilcox),  1742 

John  H.  Meigs  (Built  by  Jonathan,  son  of  Thomas  Wilcox),  -       1770 

Capt.  Frederic  Lee,  about  1787 

Miss  Lucy  Scranton,  1764 

George  M.  Crampton,  1789 

Miss  Susan  Smith,  -        about  1745 

Mrs.  Laura  Bassett,  -     "      1748 

Mrs.  Levi  Dingwell,        -  -       1762 

Sylvanus  Shelley  House,       -  about  1775 

Julian  Watrous,  1770 

EAST    RIVER    DISTRICT. 

Lawrence  Knowles  (Abraham  Cruttenden  House),  1735 

Mrs.  George  Fowler  (Built  by  Reuben  Fowler).  -       1760 

George  Munger,         -  about  1760 

NORTH   WEST   DISTRICT. 

George  W.  Munger,        -  -       1780 

Charles  N.  Appleby  (Built  by  David  Grave),  1760 


250 

WOODS    DISTRICT. 

J.  F.  Leete  (Return  Jonathan  Wilcox  House),  -       1680 

Leander  Griswold  (Birth-place  of  Daniel  Hand),  1739 

Rev.  Mr.  Mosman  (David  Field  House),  1720 

Birth-place  of  D.  D.  Field,  D.  D. 

William  II.  Dowd,     -  J74O 

J.  Benjamin  Griffith,  1735 

UNION    DISTRICT. 

James  Kane  (Norton  House),  I7X5 

Richard  S.  Meigs,  -       i?4<> 

Amos  Bishop  House,  175° 

Frederic  F.  Bailey,  -       1745 


NORTH  MADISON. 

Daniel  Hill,    - 
Mrs.  Julia  Parker, 
Mrs.  Alpha  Dowd,    - 
Morris  Jones, 
Henry  A.  Searing, 
Truman  Johnson  House, 
Charles  H.  Parker,    - 
Greeley  H.  White, 
Nelson  R.  Taylor, 
Asa  Stevens, 
James  Stevens, 
Edward  L.  Stevens, 
John  Cunningham,    - 
Alfred  B.  Scranton, 
Mrs.  Loren  Stevens, 

In  commemorating  the  Founders  of  the  Town,  a  few  old 
inscriptions  from  their  tombstones  will  be  of  interest.  As  is 
well  known,  the  first  cemetery  occupied  the  central  and  lower 
portions  of  the  Guilford  Green,  but  early  in  the  present  cen- 
tury the  stones  were  removed  and  all  traces  of  the  graves 
obliterated.  The  inscriptions  on  the  stones  in  Guilford  of  an 
earlier  date  than  1800,  have  been  published  by  the  New 
Haven  County  Historical  Society. 

The  oldest  cemetery  now  in  use  within  the  limits  of  the 
original  town  is  the  one  in  the  eastern  part  of  Madison,  known 


251 

as  the  Hammonassett  Cemetery.  The  oldest  stones  here, 
bearing  only  initials  and  the  year  cut  on  rough  slabs  from  the 
fields,  run  back  to  167 — .  A  tradition  in  the  Meigs  family 
runs,  that  Vincent  Meigs,  who  died  in  1658,  was  the  first  per- 
son interred  in  this  cemetery.  A  prominent  man  in  the  early 
days  was  Janna  Meigs.  A  brown  sandstone  to  his  memory 
is  inscribed  as  follows  : 

Here  lies  Interrd  the 

Body  of  JANNA  MEIGS 

Esqr  who  Decd  June 

the  $th  1739  in  ye 
6yth  Year  of  his  Age 

The  adjoining  stone  says  : 

In  Memory  of  Mi' 
HANNAH     MEIGS 

Relict  of  y«  late 

Worshipfull  JANNA 

MEIGS  Esqr  who 

Departed  this  life 

Janr  4th  i~4960  Aged  76 


Of  a  later  date,  but  interesting  as  showing  a  soldier  father 
of  a  soldier  son,  is  the  inscription  above  the  grave  of  Capt. 
Jehiel  Meigs;  his  son,  Capt.  Jehiel  Meigs,  was  killed  in  the 
revolutionary  war;  his  remains  brought  on  from  New  York 
state,  rest  in  the  West  Cemetery. 


In  Memory  of 
Capt.  JEHIEL  MEIGS 

who  died 

March  23rd  1780 

Aged  76  years 

In  faith  he  died,  in  dust  he  lies, 
But  faith  foresees  that  dust  shall  rise 
When  Jesu^s  calls,  while  hope  assumes 
And  boasts  his  joy  among  the  tombs. 


252 
Near  by,  on  a  small  slate  stone,  we  find — 

HERE  LIETH  ye 

BODY  OF  MRS 

SARAH  MEIGS 

WIFE  OF  DEACON 

JOHN   MEIGS 

WHO  DECEASED 

NOVR  ye  24th 

1691  AGED 

ABOUT  42  YEARS 

The  West  Cemetery  in  Madison  was  opened,  as  shown  by 
an  inscription  on  a  stone,  in  1688;  it  now  contains  1800 
graves.  A  few  inscriptions  from  this  cemetery  are  given, 
which  were  kindly  furnished  by  Mr.  Orland  Isbell  of  New 
Haven,  who  has  spent  many  hours  in  deciphering  and  making 
copies  of  the  inscriptions  prior  to  1800. 

As  you  enter  the  burying  ground  by  the  driveway  the  yard 
appears  to  be  rather  distinctly  divided  into  two  parts — the  old 
and  the  new — by  an  east  and  west  line.  The  lower  part  next 
the  highway  is  warmly  sheltered  by  a  hill  on  the  east  and  in 
full  view  of  the  Sound  to  the  south.  On  this  gentle  southerly 
slope  rest  the  early  inhabitants.  Most  of  the  old  monuments 
are  of  brown  stone,  but  a  few  are  of  slate  or  of  lichen-covered 
granite  roughly  carved.  As  you  enter  the  yard  the  first  one 
venerable  for  antiquity  runs  as  follows  : 

Sacred  to  the  Memory  of 
Mr.   NATHANIEL       LEE 

who  died  at  Williston 

Vermont  March  4th  1801 

aged  66  £  his  Confort 

Mrs  MABEL       LEE 

who  died  in  Guilford  on  a 

Visit  Ocf  2oth  1800  aged  62 


Passing  Mortal!   our  Society  has  Long 
been  the  Majority  &  the  Voice  of 
Heaven  Commands  you  to  prepare 
to  become  a  Member  of  it. 


253 


In  the  same  row  rest  two  men  of  the  name  of  Meigs,  de- 
fenders of  their  country,  who  deserve  a  wider  fame  than 
silent  stone  can  give  : 


In  Memory  of 
Cap*  JEHIEL  MEIGS 
who  died  in  the  service 

of  his  Country 
in  the  state  of  New  York 

Decmr  27th  AD  1776 
In  the  34th  Year  of  his  age 

Whose  Body 

was  brought  from  thence 

by  his  affectionate  Wife 

and  Interred  here. 


And  another 


In  Memory  of 

Cap*  PHINEAS  MEIGS 

who  fell  in  an  action 

with  the  Refugees 

May  igth  AD  1782. 

Contending  for  the  Freedom 

of  his  Country. 

In  the  74th  Year 

of  his  Age. 

This  action  was  fought  near  the  East  Wharf  and  resulted  in 
the  death  of  three  of  the  "  Refugees." 

An  old  brown-stone  tablet,  six  feet  by  four,  and  a  half  a 
foot  in  thickness,  set  on  masonry  of  granite  blocks,  stands  as 
it  was  erected  nearly  a  hundred  years  ago  : 

In  MEMORY  of 

The  Reverend  and  venerable 

JONATHAN  TODD,  AM. 

who  was  born  at  New  Haven  March  2oth  1713; 

ordained  pastor  of  the  Church  at 

East  Guilford  Oct  24th  1733; 

and  continued  there  in  the  ministry  until  his  death. 
He  had  a  contemplative  mind;    read  and   thought  much 

was  candid  in  his  enquiries; 

and  in  science  theology  and  history, 

had  a  clear  discernment  and  sound  judgment. 

Singularly   mild  and    amiable   in  his    disposition; 

Clothed  with  humility  and  plainness; 


254 

Serene  in  all  occurrences  of  life;  a  friend  and  patriot; 
a  most  laborious  and  faithful  minister, 

guided  by  the  sacred  oracles; 

eminent  for  piety  and  resignation; 

adorning  Religeon  which  brings 

Glory  to  God  and  salvation  to  men. 

He  died  in  faith  Feb*  24th  1791. 
B3'  his  side  lies  interred  his  virtuous  Consort, 

Mrs.  ELIZABETH  TODD, 
who  died  Decr  I4th  1783  JEt.  73. 


Near  the  tomb  of  the  Rev.  Jonathan  Todd  is  that  of  the 
Rev.  John  Hart. 

Here  lyeth  the  Body 

of  the  Revd  Mr  John 

Hart  Who  Deceased 

March  ye  4  A:D  1731 

in  the  49  year 

of  his  Age. 

Beside  her  husband  rests  Mrs.  Rebekah  Hart.  This  stone 
is  of  slate,  about  eighteen  inches  high  by  sixteen  broad,  and 
elaborately  carved  : 

HERE  LYES  1NTERED 
ye   BODY  OF   M" 
REBEKAH  HART  y« 
WIFE  TO  ye   REVR 
MR  JNo  HART 
WHO  WAS  BORN 
NOVEMBER  ye   n 
ANNO  DOM  1692 
&  DEPARTED  THIS  LIFE 
DECEMBR  y«  7  ANNOQE 
DOM.   1715. 

Two  old  brown  stones,  commemorating  the  family  of 
Grave,  stand  side  by  side  : 

HERE  LIETH  HERE  LIETH   Ye 

THE  BODY  OF  BODY  OF  ELIZA 

DAUID  GRAUE  BATH  WIFE  OF 

WHO  DECEASED  JOHN  GRAUE 

NOUr    Ye    i6th  WHO  DIED  APRIL 

A        D         1726  Ye     30th     1725 

AGED  26  YEARS  AGED  37  YEARS 


255 

Rude  carving  and  rude  spelling  are  found  combined  in  a 
stone  dear  the  middle  of  the  yard,  whereon  the  inscription 
ran  as  follows  : 

HEAR  •  LIES  •   Y«  •   BODIS 
OF  •   SUBMIT  •  &  .  SARY   - 
THE  •  DAFTERS  •  OF  •  Mr 
JOHN  •  &  -   Mr'  SUBMIT 
EUARTES  •   HOO  •   DIED 
in  -  ye   •  6  •  &  •  4  YEER  •   OF 
THEAR  •  AGE  •   1742  - 

Not  so  remarkable  for  antiquity  as  for  the  quaint  and  ap- 
propriate epitaph  is  the  tomb  of  Captain  Griffin.  It  is  a 
marble  tablet,  supported  on  five  columns,  and  it  marks  the 
resting  place  of  a  sailor  who  lived  in  the  pioneer  days  of 
American  commerce : 

E    G 

§  SACRED  § 

to   the   Memory   of 

CAPT.  EDWARD  GRIFFIN 

who  departed  this  life 

August  3d  1802 

aged  40  years. 


Though  Boreas  blasts  and  Neptunes  waves 

Have  tos'd  me  to  and  fro 
In  spite  of  both  by  God's  decree 

I  Harbor  here  below. 

Where  I  do  now  at  anchor  ride 

With  many  of  our  fleet 
Yet  once  again  I  must  set  sail 

Our  Admiral  Christ  to  meet. 


Behold  and  see  as  you  pass  by 
As  you  are  now  so  once  was  I 
As  I  am  now  so  you  might  be 
Prepare  for  death  and  follow  me. 


A  small  brown  stone,  near  the  center  of  the  old  yard,  bears 
this  inscription  : 

SAMUEL   SON    OF 

MR  JOHN    &   MRS 

MARY    FRENCH 

WAS    BORN    1682 

AND    DIED    1688 

AND   HE  WAS  Ye 

FIRST    CORPS 

BURIED  HERE. 

The  following  short  eulogy  of  Deacon  Hill  appears  on  a 
stone  of  unusual  size  and  workmanship  : 

In  Memory  of 

Dea"  TIMOTHY  HILL,  Esqr 
who  after  having  served  his 
generation  usefully  in  many 

public  offices  and 
employments;    fell    on   sleep, 

Febry  7th  1781. 
in  the  sgth  Year  of  his 

Age. 

Blessed     are  the     dead 
which   die   in   the  Lord. 

The  following  is  the  outline  of  a  life  begun  just  two  hun- 
dred years  ago  : 

MRS. 

SARAH  MORRISON 
was    born    July    7th 
1689     Was   married 
to  Mr  JONATHAN  TODD 
April  loth  1711  (who 
died  Septbr  I4th  1723) 
And  was  Married    to 
Deacon  BENJAMIN 
STONE     June       1735 
And    died  April  agth 
1753     And         Her 
Body  is  Interred  Here. 


CATALOGUE  OF  RELICS  EXHIBITED. 


Through  the  generosity  of  the  late  Rev.  L.  T.  Bennett,  D.   D.,  these  relics 
were  displayed  in  his  houses  on  Whitfield  street. 


The  views  taken  in  the  English  towns  and  parishes  whence 
some  of  the  settlers  came  to  New  England,  were  procured 
through  the  kindness  of  the  following  gentlemen  :  Rev.  W. 
G.  Andrews,  Master  of  St.  Cross  Hospital,  Winchester;  Rev. 
S.  A.  Barnett,  vicar  of  St.  Jude's,  Whitechapel,  London  ; 
Rev.  T.  A.  Carr,  vicar  of  Harden,  Kent;  Rev.  S.  L.  A. 
Cooper,  rector  of  Croxton  and  Eltisley,  Cambridgeshire; 
Rev.  F.  P.  Du  Sautoy,  rector  of  Ockley,  Surrey  ;  Rev.  A.  H. 
Harrison,  vicar  of  Cranbrook,  Kent ;  Rev.  E.  H.  Jones,  vicar 
of  Rolvenden,  Kent.  The  friendly  interest  shown  by  all 
these  clergymen,  (several  of  whom  presented  the  photographs 
to  us)  entitles  them  to  our  special  thanks.  The  Rev.  Henry 
W.  Whitfeild,  vicar  of  Christ  Church,  West  Green,  Tollen- 
ham,  London,  from  whom  we  received  the  Whitfeild  arms, 
also  sent  some  interesting  genealogical  notes,  showing  the 
first  minister  of  Guilford  to  have  been  of  his  family,  a  very 
ancient  one.  He  retains  the  spelling  of  the  name  (Whitfeild) 
which  appears  in  the  extracts  from  the  Ockley  Register.  The 
Rev.  C.  M.  Ramus,  rector  of  Playden,  with  East  Guildford, 
Sussex,  gave  information  bearing  on  the  suggestion  that  the 
latter  parish  may  have  furnished  its  name  to  the  American 
Guilford.  The  letter  of  Mr.  Ramus  makes  the  suggestion 
seem  an  improbable  one. 

Extracts  from  the  Parish  Register  of  Ockley,  Surrey, 
sent  by  the  Rev.  F.  P.  Du  Sautoy,  Rector  of  Ockley.  (Ab- 
breviated.) 

1619 — Dorothea,  daughter  of  Henry  Whitfeild,  baptized,  March  25. 
1620 — Sarah,  daughter  of  H.  W.,  baptized  November  i. 


258 


1622 — Abigail,  daughter  of  H.  W.,  baptized  September  I. 
1624 — Thomas,  son  of  H.  W.,  baptized  December  i. 
1626(7) — John,  son  of  H.  W.,  baptized  February  n. 
1629 — Nathanael,  son  of  H.  W.,  baptized  June  28. 
1631(2) — Mary,  daughter  of  H.  W.,  baptized  March  4. 
1633(4) — Henry,  son  of  H.  W,,  baptized  March  9. 
1635 — Rebekah,  daughter  of  H.  W.,  baptized  December  25. 
I634(5) — Henry,  son  of  H.  W.,  buried  February,  last  day. 

The  Relic  Committee  desire  to  express  their  high  apprecia- 
tion of  the  kindrless  of  the  late  Dr.  Bennett  in  loaning  his 
large  and  commodious  houses  on  Whitfield  street  for  their 
exhibition,  and  their  sorrow  that  he  was  not  permitted  to  see 
the  occasion  which  he  had  looked  forward  to  with  so  much 
delight,  and  to  which  his  genial  presence  would  have  been  an 
added  attraction. 

HALLECK  COLLECTION. 

The  following  articles,   unless  otherwise  stated,    belonged   to  the   poet, 
Fitz-Greene  Halleck. 


LOANED  BY  LEWIS   ROSSITER   ELLIOT. 

1  Portrait  of  Fitz-Greene  Halleck. 

2  Portrait     of     Joseph     Rodman 

Drake.     Owned  by  Halleck. 

3  Portrait  of  Halleck  in  old  age. 

4  Stove  and  Andirons. 

5  Teapot.     Used    by  Miss  Maria 

Halleck. 

6  Chair.     Owned  by  Miss  Maria 

Halleck. 

7  Sampler.     Worked      by     Polly 

Elliott  (Mrs.   Israel  Halleck), 
in  1781. 

8  Tailor's  Goose.     Used   by  Mr. 

Israel  Halleck. 

9  "Old    Curiosity    Shop."     Pre- 

sented to  Halleck  by  Dickens, 
with  latter's  autograph. 

10  Copy  of  Shakespeare. 

11  Webster's  Dictionary.    Present- 

ed by  publishers. 

12  Two  Verses  of  Marco  Bozzaris 

in  Halleck's  handwriting. 

13  Letters  from    Fitz-Greene   Hal- 

leck to  his  father,  Israel  Hal- 
leck. 

14  Letters  to  Polly  Elliott.     From 

Miss    Betsey    Beers    of   New 
Haven,  1783  and  1785. 


15  Needle  Book.     Owned  by  Miss 

Maria  Halleck. 

LOANED   BY   MRS.    L.    C.    STONE. 

16  Cup  and  Saucer. 

17  Pair  Brass  Candlesticks. 

18  Needle-book.     Made    by   Miss 

Maria  Halleck  out  of  her 
Uncle  William  Elliott's  Chris- 
tening Blanket,  1755. 

19  Cape.     Worn    by  Miss    Maria 

Halleck. 

20  Old  Oaken  Chair.    Belonged  to 

Halleck. 

LOANED  BY  MRS.  HENRY  R.  SPENCER. 

21  Bronze    Inkstand.       Presented 

by  the  Literary  Club  of  New 
York. 

22  Quilt.     Made  from  two  dresses 

of  the  wedding  outfit  of  Mary 
(Elliott)  Halleck,  mother  of 
Fitz  -  Greene.  Lined  with 
woolen,  spun  and  woven  by 
her. 

23  Half  Dozen  Tea  Spoons      Be- 

longing to  Mary  (Elliott) 
Halleck's  wedding  outfit. 
Marked  M.  E.,  1787. 

24  Pair    of     Gloves.      Owned    by 

Miss  Maria  Halleck. 


259 


LOANED    BY    MRS.    MORRIS    TYI.ER    OF 
BINGHAMPTON,  N.  Y. 

25  Lock  of  Halleck's  Hair.    When 

he  was  30  years  old,  given  her 
by  Miss  Maria  Halleck. 

LOANED   BY   A.    G.    SOMMER. 

26  Coffee  Mill  and  Wooden  Mor- 

tar. 

LOANED    BY   MRS.    RUTH   WILCOX    OF 
NEW   HAVEN. 

27  Silver   Thimble.     Belonged    to 

Mary  (Elliott)  Halleck. 

28  White  Kid  Shoes.    Belonged  to 

Miss  Maria  Halleck. 

29  Wooden  Fan.    Owned  formerly 

by  Miss  Maria  Halleck. 

LOANED   BY   MISS   RUTH   HART. 

30  Spectacles. 

LOANED    BY   MRS.    MILO   COOK. 

31  Stand. 

LOANED   BY    MRS.    WILLIAM    DAVIS. 

32  Table.        Belonged     to     Israel 

Halleck. 

LOANED    BY    MISS    AMANDA    STONE. 

33  China      Plate.       Belonged      to 

Maria  Halleck. 

LOANED    BY    MRS.    WILLIAM    MEIGS. 

34  Porridge  Pot  and  Spider  (very 

small).      Belonged    to    Maria 
Halleck. 

LOANED    BY    MRS    AUGUSTUS    HALL. 


35 


Autograph  Letter  of  Fitz- 
Greene  Halleck,  Stating  elec- 
tion of  Abraham  S.  Fowler  to 
Ugly  Club  of  New  York;  also 
official  notification  of  same  by 


Secretary  of  Club.  Date, 
Jan.  2,  1815.  The  Ugly  Club 
was  a  social  organization  of 
the  handsomest  young  men  in 
New  York  City. 

LOANED    BY    MRS.     S.    B.    CHITTENDEN 
OF    BROOKLYN,   N.   Y. 

36  Chair.     In  which  Halleck  was 

seated  whea  portrait  was 
painted. 

LOANED     BY     REV.     E.     C.     STARR    OF 
CROMWELL. 

37  Autograph  of  Halleck. 

LOANED  'BY    MRS.    L.    H.    STEINER   OF 
BALTIMORE,    MD. 

38  Autograph     Note    of    Halleck. 

Thanking  Hon  R.  D.  Smyth 
for  loan  of  books. 

LOANED    BY    MRS.    JOHN    NORTON. 

39  Head  of  Umbrella  Handle. 

LOANED    BY     MRS.    GEORGE    S.    DAVIS. 

40  Bead  Basket.     Owned  by  Maria 

Halleck. 

LOANED    BY    MISS     KATE    E.    FOWLER. 

41  Coat  and  Habit.    Worn  by  Miss 

Maria  Halleck  when  brides- 
maid at  the  wedding  of  Will- 
iam Horace  Elliott  and  Mrs. 
Hannah  (Hubbard)  Stone, 
August  3ist,  1829. 

LOANED  BY  MRS.  DAVID  HENTON. 


42     Hair   Trunk.     Owned   by  Hal- 
leck. 


LOANED    BY    CLIFFORD    BISHOP. 

43     Halleck's  Bellows. 


26o 


BARTHOLOMEW     COLLECTION. 

Exhibited  at  the  residence  of  Mr.  Worthington  Bartholomew  (formerly 
the  George  Griswold  Place),  corner  Lovers'  Lane  and  Boston  Street. 


44  Mahogany     Sideboard.       Solid 

top  and  legs.  Over  150  years 
old. 

45  Oaken  Arm-chair.   Queen  Anne 

style.     Over  200  years  old. 

46  Gilt  Framed  Mirror.     Over  100 

years  old.  Owned  by  Nancy 
Landon,  wife  of  George 
Griswold  and  mother  of  Mrs. 
Bartholomew. 

47  Porcelain  Snuff  Box.      Owned 

by  Ezra  Griswold,  a  Revolu- 
tionary soldier,  and  grand- 
father of  Mrs.  Bartholomew. 

48  Gold    Locket.     With    hair     of 

George  and  Roger  Griswold. 

49  Pin-Case.      Belonged  to  Mehit- 

abel  Cleaveland.  Over  100 
years  old. 

50  Picture  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  George 

Griswold.  Painted  by  George 
M  unger. 

51  Silhouette  of  Amanda  Griswold. 

sister  of  George  and  wife  of 
Eldred  Atwater  Landon;  also 
an  early  sweetheart  of  Mr. 
Henry  W.  Chittenden. 

52  Ship's  Quadrant,  1769.     Owned 

by  Capt.  Samuel  Landon. 

53  Silver  Spoon.     Marked   H.   E., 

for  Hannah  Elliott,  wife  of 
Capt.  Samuel  Landon. 

54  Silver    Spoon.     Marked    L.  F., 

for  Laura  Foote,  mother  of 
Mrs.  Bartholomew.  Over  100 
years  old. 

55  Silver  Spoon.     Marked  N.    L., 

for  Nancy  Landon.  About 
100  years  old. 

56  Pair  of  Ear-rings.     Belonged  to 

Nancy  Landon. 

57  Ring   and    Bracelet.     Made   of 

hair  of  Mehitabel  Cleaveland, 
grandmother  of  Mrs.  Bar- 
tholomew. 

58  Locket.     With       Mr.      George 

Griswold's  hair. 

59  Silver   Brooch.     Made    of    Ma- 

sonic Emblems.  Belonged  to 
Nancy  Landon. 


60  Profiles,  six  on  a  card.    Grand- 

father and  grandmother, 
father  and  mother,  and  two 
aunts  of  Mrs.  Bartholomew. 

61  Silhouette  of  Fanny   Griswold. 

Wife  of  Abraham  Fowler. 
She  was  very  beautiful. 

62  Decanter  and  Pitcher.     Buried 

in  a  cave  in  East,  or  Gris- 
wold's Woods,  at  time  of  en- 
counter at  Leete's  Island, 
June  18,  1781.  The  Cave  was 
occupied  for  many  years  by 
Dorcas,  one  of  the  last  of  the 
Menuncatuck  Indians,  who 
was  fed  for  a  long  time  by 
Mehitabel  (Cleaveland)  Gris- 
wold. 

63  Chair.     Owned  by  Hannah  Lan- 

don.    Over  125  years  old. 

64  Chair.     Owned    by   E/ra   Gris- 

wold. 

65  Full  Set  of  Burnt  China.    From 

England.  In  wedding  outfit 
of  Mrs.  Nancy  (Landon) 
Griswold. 

66  Teapot.     Owned     by     Hannah 

(Elliott)  Landon. 

67  Two  Preserve  Plates.    In  shape 

of    oak    leaves.     Believed   to 
be  nearly  200  years  old. 
6S     Indian     Ax.     Found     on     the 
place. 

69  Three    pairs     Silver     Buckles. 

All  over  100  years  old. 

70  Gravy      Boat.       Belonged      to 

Nancy  (Landon)  Griswold, 
died  1869,  aged  82. 

71  China     Custard     Cups.      Very 

ancient. 

72  Gravy    Boat.     Handle  broken. 

Owned  by  Mehitabel  (Cleave- 
land) Griswold. 

73  Flip  Glass.     Owned  by  Mehit- 

abel (Cleaveland)  Griswold, 
wife  of  Ezra. 

74  Mahogany      Book-case.     Solid 

doors.  Originally  on  top  of 
a  mahogany  secretary. 

75  Cherry   Desk.     Over  150  years 

old. 


26 1 


76  Six  Continental  Chairs.     Over 

100  years  old. 

77  Cherry  Stand. 

78  Baby  Chair.     Very  old. 

79  Picture  of  Mrs.  Nancy  (Landon) 

Griswold.     Taken  in  old  age. 

80  Wash  Stand.     200  years  old. 

81  Earthen     Flower    Vase.     Very 

old  and  peculiar. 

82  Russia  Counterpane.     Brought 

from  New  York.  100  years 
old. 

83  Dimity      Counterpane.        Em- 

broidered by  Mrs.  Hannah 
(Elliott)  Landon,  wife  of 
Capt.  Samuel. 

84  Counterpane.     Embroidered  by 

Mr.  Bartholomew's  mother  at 
the  age  of  60.  One  of  seven 
she  made  for  her  children  at 
that  time. 

85  Dimity  Curtains.     Still   in  use. 

Formerly  parlor  hangings. 
Over  loo  years  old. 


86  High  Post  Bedstead  and  Wash- 

stand.      Of     curled      maple. 
Over  100  years  old. 

87  Rocking  Chair.    Over  200  years 

old. 

88  L'hantbois  of  cherry. 

89  L'hantbois  of  whitewood. 

90  Looking  Glass.     Owned  by  Mr. 

Ezra  Griswold. 

91  Linen  Chest.    Belonged  to  Mrs. 

Bartholomew's   grandmother. 

92  Mirror,    with    Cherry   and   Gilt 

Frame.     Over  100  years  old. 

93  Mahogany  Table.     Solid  top. 

94  Two  Cherry  Tables. 

95  Pair  Brass  Candlesticks. 

96  Snuffers  and  Tray. 

97  Two  Pewter  Platters. 

98  Three  pairs  Spectacles. 

99  Two  Tea  Trays. 

100  Two  Candle-stands. 


HUBBARD  COLLECTION. 
Exhibited  by  Miss  Mary  Hubbard  at  her  house  on  Broad  street. 


103 


104 


105 


Oak  Linen  Chest.  Brought 
from  England  1635. 

Wedgewood  Teapot. 

Glass  Tumbler.  With  paint- 
ing in  bright  colors.  Very 
old.  Owned  by  Miss  Hub- 
bard's  great  great-grand- 
mother. 

Snuff  Bottle.  Like  103,  and 
owned  by  same  person. 

Goblet.  From  West  Indies. 
Over  loo  years  old. 


106  Blue  Ware,    Gravy  Bowl   and 

Plate. 

107  Two   Toy    China    Dogs,     zoo 

years  old. 

108  Various  articles  of    Crockery 

and  Glassware.     100  to  150 
years  old. 

109  Two  Small  Pictures.   100  years 

old. 


All  the  following  articles  were  exhibited  at  Dr.  Bennett's  houses  and  are 
arranged  in  the  alphabetical  order  of  their  owners: 

LOANED  KY  MRS.   LOIS  APPELL.  Whitfield    was     the     rector 

and  William  Dudley  and 
Thomas  Norton  lived  there. 
Window  in  south  wall  of 
nave  dates  from  1327,  tower 
from  1700.  (Presented  by 
Rev.  F.  P.  DuSautoy,  rector 
of  Ockley.) 

2  Four  Views  of  Ockley  Green. 
With  Stone  Street,  an  old 
Roman  road. 


no  Canoe  Paddle,  from  Sandwich 
Islands.  In  family  over  60 
years. 


BY     REV.     WILLIAM 
DREWS,   T>.   D. 


G.     AN- 


iii     Two  Views  of    St.    Margaret's 
Church,   Ockley.      Rev.  Mr. 


262 


113  View  of  Parish  Church,  Mar- 

den,  Kent.  William  Chit- 
tend  en  was  probably  born 
there.  (Presented  by  Rev. 
F.  A.  Carr,  Vicar  of  Mar- 
den.) 

114  Two  Views    of    St.   Dunstan's 

Church,  Cranbrook,  Kent. 
Home  of  William  Chitten- 
den,  Jacob  Sheafe  and  his 
sisters,  Mrs.  Whitfield,  Mrs. 
Chittenden  and  Mrs.  Kit- 
chel. 

115  View  of    Very  Old   House  in 

High  street,  Cranbrook. 

116  Glassenbury.   View  of  Moated 

House. 

117  Sissinghurst  Castle.    Now  cot- 

tages and  farm  buildings. 
( 114-117  inclusive,  presented 
by  Rev.  A.  H.  Harrison, 
Vicar  of  Cranbrook.) 

118  View    of     Parish    Church    of 

Rolvenden,  Kent.  Home  of 
John  Hoadley  and  Robert 
Kitchel. 

119  View  of  Village  Street  of  Rol- 

venden. 

120  Three    Views    of     Old    Farm 

House,  Rolvenden. 

121  View  of  Norman  Gate  in  Bris- 

tol Cathedral.  William  Sew- 
ard  came  from  Bristol. 

122  Three  Views  of  Ancient  Build- 

ings in  Bristol.  (Bristol 
Views  presented  by  Rev.  S. 
A.  Barnett,  vicar  of  St. 
Jude's,  Whitechapel,  Lon- 
don.) 

123  Archbishop  Abbott's  Hospital, 

Guildford,  Surrey.  Whence 
Guildford  is  supposed  to 
take  its  name. 

124  Old  Guildford.     From  a  print. 

(Presented  by  Miss  Kate  E. 
Hunt.) 

125  The     Grange,     Albury,     near 

Guildford.  The  part  shown 
was  once  a  farm-house,  be- 
lieved to  date  back  to  Whit- 
field's  time.  About  10  miles 
from  Ockley. 

126  Photograph     of    Whitfield 

House,  Guilford,  1639. 

127  Maps  of    Surrey,   Sussex    and 

Kent.  Whence  most  of  the 
sealers  came.  (Presented 
by  Rev.  S.  A.  Barnett.) 


128  Photograph  of  Portrait  of  Rev. 

Bela  Hubbard,  D.  D. 

129  Map    of   New    Haven   Colony 

and  the  towns  in  Connecti- 
cut about  1660. 

130  Illuminated  Coat   of  Arms  of 

Rev.  Henry  Whitfield.  From 
Rev.  Henry  W.  Whitfield, 
London,  England. 

131  Photograph  of  Ettisley  Green. 

Birthplace  of  Samuel  Dis- 
borough. 

132  Photograph  of  Ettisley  Church. 

133  Lithograph  of  Church  of  Rev. 

Henry  Ware  Whitfield. 
A  fine  photograph  of  the  tomb  of 
Bishop  Hoadley  in  Winchester 
Cathedral,  England,  sent  by  the 
Rev.  William  G.  Andrews,  Master 
of  St.  Cross  Hospital,  was  unfor- 
tunately 'received  a  few  days  too 
late  for  the  exhibition.  Bishop 
Benjamin  Hoadley  was  a  son  of 
Rev.  Samuel  Hoadley,  a  native  of 
Guilford.  He  was  born  in  Wester- 
ham,  Kent,  November  i4th,  1676 ; 
was  successively  Bishop  of  Bangor, 
Hereford,  Salisbury,  and  Winches- 
ter, and  died  at  Winchester,  April 
/th,  1761. 

LOANED    BY    MISS   AMY    F.    BARTLETT, 
OF    NORTH    GUILFORD. 

134  Indian   Spear-head  and  Stone 

Pestle. 


135 


Powder  Horn.     1777.     Owned 
by  Samuel  Bartlet. 


LOANED  BY  MRS.    SUSAN  C.   BARTLETT 
OF    NORTH    GUILFORD. 

136  Picture    of     U.     S.     Gunboat 

Lenape.  In  Rebellion,  A. 
A.  Surgeon  Stephen  C.  Bart- 
lett,  a  native  of  North  Guil- 
ford, served  in  this  vessel. 

LOANED     BY     ALANSON     BRADLEY    OF 
MADISON. 

137  Canteen.       Used      either      in 

Revolution,  or  War  of  1812. 

138  "American     Selections    being 

the  third  part  of  Grammatical 
Institute  of  the  English 
Language."  By  Noah  Web- 
ster, Hartford,  loth  Edition. 


263 


LOANED   BY    MRS.     FREDERICK   BRAD- 
LEY  OF   MADISON. 

139  Brass     Buttons.      Owned     by 

Major  Julius  Willard,  born 
1754,  who  fought  in  Revo- 
lution. 

LOANED   BY   MRS.  WILLIAM   BUELL  OF 
MADISON. 

140  One  Silk  Mitt.     125  years  old. 

Worn  by  a  baby  when  bap- 
tized. 

141  Pitcher.     Over  100  years  old. 

LOANED   BY   MRS.  HARVEY   BUSHNELL 
OF    SAYBROOK. 

142  Silver    Spoon.      Belonged    to 

Caleb  Leete,  grandson  of 
Gov.  William  Leete.  Marked 
C.  L.,  for  him;  R.  L.,  for 
Rachel  Leete,  his  daughter; 
and  S.  S.,  probably  for  Seth 
Stone,  her  husband.  Their 
eldest  grandson,  Stephen 
Stone,  owned  it  for  over  50 
years. 

143  Horn  Drinking  Cup.     Carried 

by  Andrew  Stone  through 
the  Revolution. 

LOANED   BY    MRS.     FRANK    BARTLETT 
OF   NORTH    MADISON. 

144  Six  pieces  of  Antique  Ware. 

LOANED   BY   MRS.    FRANK   BISHOP    OF 
NORTH   MADISON. 

145  Small  Sauce  Dish. 

LOANED   BY   E.    CHAPMAN   BISHOP. 

146  Door  of   Pew  No.    i,   in   Old 

Church  on  Green. 

LOANED    BY   MRS.  BARTLEM. 

147  Platter.     Once  owned   by  the 

Duke  of  Buckingham,  and 
used  at  Stone  House,  three 
miles  from  Buckingham. 

148  Piece  of  Satin.    Used  in  hang- 

ings of  dining  room  of  Stone 
House,  near  Buckingham. 

LOANED    BY   MISS    HARRIET   BARKER. 

149  Bed  Quilt.   Over  100 years  old. 

150  Red  Riding  Hood. 


151  Long  Linen  Gloves.    Made  by 

Tryphena    Page    about    125 
years  ago. 

152  Linen  Stockings.    Home-spun 

and  knit  100  years  ago. 

LOANED  BY  MRS.  RICHARD  BARTLETT. 

153  Earrings.    Brought  from  Med- 

iterranean;   stones   in   them 
from  Rock  of  Gibraltar. 

154  Vase.     Very  old. 

LOANED  BY  MRS.  DARWIN  N.  BENTON. 

155  "  Sermons"  and  "  Saints'  Daily 

Exercise."     By  John    Pres- 
ton, London,  1634. 

LOANED   BY   MRS.    E.    A.   BENTON. 

156  Ancient   Wills   and   Deeds  in 

Benton  family. 

LOANED  BY  MRS.  GEORGE  W.  BENTON. 

157  Morning    Post,    November    7, 

I?83,      with      Washington's 
Farewell  Address. 

LOANED   BY     JOEL   BENTON,     AMENIA, 
N.    Y. 

158  Manuscript  Sermons   of   Rev. 

Joseph  Eliot. 

159  Photograph  of  Back  of  Stone 

House  taken  by  Myron  Ben- 
ton  in  1862. 

LOANED  BY   MRS.    L.    E.    BALDWIN. 

160  Tea   and    Table    Spoon.     250 

years  old. 

161  Milk  Pitcher.     150  years  old. 

162  African  Spears. 

LOANED  BY  MRS.  FRANK   BLATCHLEY. 

193     Fruit  Dish.    Belonged  to  Miss 
Clara  Caldwell. 

164  Blue  China   Plate.     Belonged 

to  same. 

LOANED  BY  MRS.   HENRY   BLATCHLEY. 

165  Chair.      Formerly    owned    by 

Miss  Grace  Starr. 

166  Forks.     Owned  by  same. 


264 


LOANED  BY  WASHINGTON  BRISTOL  OF 
NORTH    MADISON. 

167  Salmon's  "Geographical  Gram- 

mar."    Over  100  years  old. 

168  "Young     Men's     Best     Com- 

panion."     Arithmetic     over 
loo  years  old. 

169  "Practical    Discourse."     Wm. 

Sherlock,  London,  1775,  29th 
edition. 


I.OANKI)    r,Y    SELDKN    BKNTON. 

170  Cane.     Owned    by    his   great- 

great-grandfather      Chitten- 
den. 

171  Sandwich    Island    Mantle    of 

Bark,  Belt  of  Grass  and  War 
Club.    Owned  here  35  years. 


LOANED    BY    DAVID    CARTER. 

172  Sign,  "Strangers'  Resort." 
Used  over  tavern,  kept  in 
Clinton  by  Mr.  Jared  Carter. 


LOANED     liY     MISS     LYDIA     D.      CHIT- 
TENDKN. 

173  Pen.     Used  by  Deacon  Abra- 

ham Chittenden,  in  corre- 
sponding with  Washington 
in  Revolution. 

174  Mirror.     Over  150  years  old. 

LOANED    I!Y    MRS.    DWIGIIT     I).    CHIT- 
TENDEN   OF    NORTH    GUILFORD. 

175  Baby  Blanket.     130  years  old. 

176  Small  Chair.     100  years  old. 

177  Pewter  Shaving  Cup.     "Used 

by  all  the  family  for  200 
years." 

LOANED     BY    MRS.    SAMUEL    CHITTEN- 
DEN   OF   MADISON. 

178  Old  Papers,  Deeds,  Etc.    Old- 

est dated  1683. 

179  Portrait  of  Parnel  Kelsey,  wife 

of  George  Munger.  Painted 
by  him  1810. 

180  Indian    Stone  Ax.     Found  in 

field  at  East  River  near  Mrs. 
Washburn's. 


LOANED     BY     DENISON    CHITTENDEN. 

181  Piece  of  Clapboard.   From  old 

Nathan  Chittenden  house  in 
York  street.  He  went  to 
Sag  Harbour  to  prepare  clap- 
boards and  shingles  for  his 
.house  about  1750. 

182  Ancient  Spur.     Relic  of  Rev- 

olution. 

183  Large  Hair   Trunk.     Brought 

from  England  by  Mr.  Loy- 
sel,  who  painted  his  house 
black  at  the  news  of  death 
of  Louis  XIV. 

LOANED      BY      MRS.      AMOS      CHITTEN- 
DEN. 

184  Chair.     150  years  old. 

LOANED, BY  MRS.   H.   D.   CHITTENDEN. 

185  Wedding  Slipper  of  Miss  Han- 

nah Coan,  who  danced  in  it 
all  night  125  years  ago 

186  Tea  Cup.     150  years  old.     Be- 

longed to  Miss  Hannah 
Coan. 

187  Brass  Candlestick.     170  years 

old.     Owned  by  same. 

LOANED     BY     E.     S.     CHITTENDEN,    OF 
ST.    PAUL,    MINN. 

188  "The  Whole  Concern  of  Man," 

by   John    Edwards,  Boston, 
1725.     Formerly  belonged  to 
Daniel  Chittenden. 
iSy     Two  Silhouettes. 

LOANED   BY  CHRIST   CHURCH   PARISH. 

190  Large  Prayer  Book      London, 

1740.  Used  in  the  church 
before  the  Revolution. 

LOANED   BY  JEROME  COAN  OF   NORTH 
GUILFORD. 

191  Oaken  Box.     Upwards  of  200 

years  old.  Came  from  Eng- 
land. 

192  "View  of  first  American  Rail- 

way Train,"  on  New  York 
Central  Railroad,  1832. 

193  Indian  Arrowheads. 

194  Wooden  Quart  Bottle. 


265 


ig5  Indian  Tomahawk.  Found  on 
David  Bartlet's  farm  in 
North  Guilford. 

196  Indian       Relics.      Found      in 

North  Guilford  by  William 
Hall.  H.  H.  Griswold  and 
Ira  Hull. 

197  Continental       Money.       1776, 

1777.  1778. 

198  "Pictures  of  Dr.   James  Ham- 

ilton, Rev.  John  Wesley, 
and  Joseph  Cole  as  they  ap- 
peared in  Edinburgh,  1790." 

199  Almanacks  from  1767  to  1777. 

200  Blue   Silk    Badge,   1776.     Be- 

longed to  John  Coan  of 
North  Guilford;  Revolution- 
ary soldier;  died  in  1845, 
aged  85.  Worn  by  him  on 
public  occasions  as  a  mark 
of  honor. 

201  "Exposition  of    the  Judiciall 

Laws  of  Moses."  1636 

202  Side-board.     Cherry  top,   ma- 

hogany front,  trimmed  with 
white  holly. 

203  "  Easy  Instruction    in    Sacred 

Harmony,"  by  William  Lit- 
tle and  William  Smith. 
Owned  by  Amos  Fowler. 

204  Cane.     From  timber    formerly 

over  door  of  Stone  House. 

205  Rocking  Chair.    Of  rived  oak, 

150  years  old. 


LOANED     BY     MRS.      SARAH     COE     OF 
MADISON. 

206  Earthen     Teapot.     Over      109 

years  old. 

LOANED    BY    MRS.    WILLIAM    COLLINS 
OF   NORTH   GUILFORD. 

207  Table.     At  which  Gen.  Wash- 

ington and  staff  ate  during 
Revolution.  Then  owned  by 
Capt.  Gilbert  Dudley.tavern 
keeper,  of  Madison. 

LOANED    BY    WILLIAM    COBLEIGH. 

208  Hand  Trunk.     250  years  old. 


LOANED  BY  TRINITY  COLLEGE,  HART- 
FORD. 

209  "Commentary  of  Valesius  on 

Hippocrates."  Once  the 
property  of  Dr.  Byran  Ros- 
siter,  the  first  physician  in 
Connecticut;  settled  in  Guil- 
ford 1651. 

210  "Virgilti  Evangelisantis  Chris- 

tiados  Libri  XIII."  Lon- 
don, 1638.  Once  owned  by 
John  Eliot,  Apostle  to  the 
Indians. 

LOANED  BY   MRS.  CAROLINE  CONKLIN 
OF   MADISON. 

211  Earthen   Teapot.       Over    100 

years  old. 

212  Earthen  Plate.    Over  100  years 

old. 

213  Pewter  Bowl.     Over  I oo  years 

old. 

214  Glass  Decanter.    Over  100  years 

old. 

LOANED   BY   MRS.    JAMES   COOK. 

215  Two  Weapons   from    Naviga- 

tor's Island,  Samoa.  Shark's 
teeth  fastened  to  wood  with 
cocoanut  fibre. 

216  Battle  -  Ax.      From      Samoan 

Islands. 

LOANED   BY    MRS.    SAMUEL   CORNELL. 

217  Silhouette  of  Roswell  Judson 

of  Stratford.  He  is  said  to 
have  delivered  the  first  He- 
brew oration  at  Yale  Col- 
lege, where  he  was  grad- 
uated 1787. 

218  Fan.      Brought    as     wedding 

present  to  Anne  Mills  of 
Fairfield,  and  now  owned 
by  her  great -great -grand  - 
child. 

219  Wooden     Heel      of     Slipper. 

Once  owned  by  Anne  Mills. 
Adjustable  to  any  slipper. 

220  Portrait  of  Charles  Bishop  of 

New  Haven.  Born  about 
1772. 

221  "Blazer   of    1838."     Worn  by 

T.  S.  Gold  of  Cornwall 
while  a  student  at  Yale, 
where  he  was  graduated 

1838. 


266 


LOANED    BY    MRS.    CRANE. 

222  Two      Pink     Teapots.       Very 

old. 

223  Sugar  Bowl.     Very  old. 

224  Plate.     Very  old. 

LOANED    BY    MRS.    H.   E.   CRUTTENDEN 
OF    MADISON. 

225  Silver  Spoon.      150  years  old. 

LOANED    BY     MRS.    CLARA    DAVIS. 

226  "Saints'     Everlasting      Rest." 

London,   1651. 


LOANED    BY    J.    LEONARD    DAVIS. 

227  Square  Chair.     160  years  old. 

228  Stand. 

LOANED   BY   MRS.    G.    S.    DAVIS. 

229  Silver  Pocket  Nutmeg  Grater. 

Owned  by  Captain  Seth  B. 
Griffing. 

230  Child's     Chair.      About      100 

years  old. 

LOANED    BY    MRS.    GEORGE    W.   DAVIS. 

231  Linen     Bed     Spread.      Spun, 

woven  and  embroidered  by 
Hannah  Hill,  wife  of 
Nathaniel  Johnson.  Now 
owned  by  her  great-grand- 
daughter. 

232  Five  Cups  and  Saucers.  Owned 

by  same  Hannah  Hill,  at 
marriage  in  1761. 

233  Silhouette.     Of    Nancy  John- 

son, wife  of  Ira  Hoadley. 

LOANED  BY  JAMES  DOWD  OF  MADISON. 

234  Tea-pot,  100  years  old. 

LOANED    BY    MRS.    NERISSA    DOWD    OF 
MADISON. 

235  Home-spun  Spread.    150  years 

old. 

LOANED     BY     MRS.     ORRIN     K.    DOWD 
OF    MADISON. 

236  Continental  Bill.     1776. 


LOANED    BY     MRS.     ALPHA    DOWD   OF 
NORTH    MADISON. 

237  Wooden     Cradle.     125     years 

old.  In  this, four  generations 
have  been  rocked. 

LOANED  BY    SIDNEY     DOWD. 

238  Family      Bible.      1773,      with 

Abner  Stone's  Family  Rec- 
ord. 

LOANED   BY   MRS.    ALBERT   DOWD. 

239  Leaves  from  Sermon   of  Rev. 

Jonathan  Todd.  175  years 
old. 

LOANED   BY    MRS.     HOBART   DOLPH. 

240  China   Cup.     Over   250  years 

old. 

LOANED     BY     MRS.     IRA     DUDLEY.    OF 
NORTH    GUILFORD. 

241  Pewter  Platter.    1775.    Owned 

originally  by  Dea.  John 
Bartlett. 

LOANED   BY   MRS.    B.     T.    DUDLEY,    OF 
MADISON. 

242  Copper    Warming     Pan.     no 

years  old. 

LOANED     BY     LANCELOT     DUDLEY    OF 
MADISON. 

243  Powder-mortar     and      Pestle. 

Owned  by  Dr.  Reynold 
Webb.  Made  of  Lignum 
Vitse. 


LOANED  BY   JASON   DUDLEY  OF  MADI- 
SON. 

244  Powder  Horn. 

245  Shot-mould. 

246  Plate. 

247  Chair. 

248  Gun. 


267 


LOANED    BY   JOHN   DUDLEY. 

249  Chair.    Owned  by  Mr.  Thomas 

Hart;  married  Concurrence 
Bartlett  in  1750. 

250  "Our     Duty      Towards      Our 

Neighbor."  Designed  and 
drawn  by  Nathaniel  Dudley 
in  1789. 

251  Knee-buckles.        Worn        by 

Joseph  Bartlett;  lived  1756- 
1786. 

252  Set  of  Almanacks,  nearly  com- 

plete, from  1780  to  1889. 
Collected  by  members  of 
Dudley  family  from  Nathan- 
iel down. 

LOANED  BY  MISS.  MARY  ANN  DUDLEY. 

253  Doll.    Owned  by  Hannah  Bart- 

lett in  1786. 

254  Toy  Drum. 

255  Pair  Brass  Candlesticks. 

256  Salt-cellar. 

257  Glass  Tea-cannister. 

258  Plate. 

259  Teapot.     256-259  inclusive  be- 

longed to  Hannah  (Bartlett) 
Dudley;  married  1808;  some 
of  them  were  presented  her 
by  her  aunt,  Mindwell  (Bart- 
lett) Chittenden. 

LOANED    BY   JOHN   HOOKER   DUDLEY. 

260  Indian  Relics.     Found  on  his 

farm  on  Clapboard  Hill. 

261  Leather  Pocketbook.  Stamped 

"  E.  Guilford ";  150  years 
old. 

LOANED   BY   H.    NELSON   DUDLEY. 

262  Warming  Pan.     Very  old. 

263  Flax   Wheel.      Spinning    two 

threads  at  once. 

264  Foot      Stove.       With      entire 

wooden  cover. 

265  Large  Winnowing  Fan. 

LOANED   BY   MISS   MARY   DUDLEY. 

266  Table.     Owned  by  John  Gris- 

wold,  her  grandfather,  who 
married  Hannah  Dudley, 
1790. 


LOANED   BY    HENRY   B.    DUDLEY. 

267  Dress.     Made      for     Deborah 

Dudley,  aged  10  years,  who 
died  1840. 

LOANED    BY    CHARLES   DUDLEY. 

268  Flint-lock     Gun,      Cartridge- 

box,  Shot-box  and  Bayonet. 
Owned  by  John  Parmelee 
of  Nut  Plains;  used  in 
Revolution. 

269  "Laws  of  Connecticut,"  1784. 

Owned  by  Thomas  Dudley. 

270  Spoon.     Marked  "  J.  M.  P.," 

for  John  and  Mary  Parme- 
lee. 

LOANED   BY   MISS   LYDIA   C.    DUDLEY. 

271  Carved  Front  of  Box.  "Brought 

over  in  Mayflower." 

272  Piece  of  Bed  Spread  Embroid- 

ery. Made  by  Lucy  Parme- 
lee, 1789. 

273  Linen  Handkerchief.    Marked 

J.  P.,  for  Julia  Parmelee, 
1789. 

274  Pocket.     Linen  dimity,  initials 

worked  in. 

275  Patchwork  Pocket. 

276  Samples    of    Flax    grown     in 

Guilford. 

LOANED   BY   MRS.    SOPHIA   DUDLEY. 

277  "Commentary  on  Titus."     By 

Thos.  Taylor,  Cambridge, 
1619. 

278  Child's  Chair.     Over  100  years 

old. 

279  Pair  of  Andirons.     Very  old. 

LOANED   BY   MISS   EMILY   DUDLEY. 

280  Bedquilt     with      Home -spun 

lining. 

LOANED    BY    MRS.    JULIETTE   DUNN. 

281  Cup  and  Saucer.     Very  old. 


268 


LOANED    BY   MISS  CORNELIA  ELLIOTT. 

282  Cup,     Saucer      and       Spoon. 

Nearly  200  years  old. 
Marked  "R.  H.,"  for  Ruth 
Hart  (Mrs.  Bartlett).  born 
1760,  and  owned  by  her 
mother. 

283  Table     Spoon.       In     constant 

use  since  1730.  Owned  by 
Diana  (Ward)  Hubbard, 
mother  of  Rev.  Bela  Hub- 
bard,  D.D. 

284  Two  Silver  Spoons.     Over  100 

years  old. 

285  Silver     Pepper     Box.       More 

than  150  years  old.  In 
Fairchild  family. 

286  Picture  of   "Ruth  in  Field  of 

Boaz,"  in  floss.  Over  So 
years  old. 

287  Portraits  of  Giles  and   Amos 

Parmelee.  Painted  by  Geo. 
Munger,  about  1806. 

288  Colored      Engravings.       Over 

100  years  old.  Subject  of 
one,  "  Washington  in  his 
Last  Illness,  attended  by 
Drs.  Craik  and  Brown;"  of 
other,  ''  Mourners  at  Tomb 
of  Washington,  who  '  Lived 
respected  and  feared,  Died 
lamented  and  revered.' " 

289  Large  Doll,  "Samuel." 

290  Green  Calash. 

LOANED   BY  LEWIS  ROSSITER  ELLIOT. 

291  Sideboard.     Brought   by  Rev. 

Joseph  Eliot  in  1664  to  site 
still  occupied  by  his  descend- 
ants. Doors  replaced  by 
part  of  pew  doors  taken 
from  old  church  on  Green. 

292  Toddy   Glass.     Used  for  gen- 

ertions  at  Eliot  family 
gatherings. 

293  Chair.     Owned  once  by  Mrs. 

Seth  Chittenden  (Ann  Ros- 
siter),  married  1782. 

294  Pepper-box,   with    opening   in 

bottom.  Once  owned  by 
Hannah  (Dudley)  Griswold. 

295  Cow   Bell.     Used   for  genera- 

tions. 

296  Flax    Knife.     In  shape    of    a 

rooster.  Wood  on  it  worn 
by  the  flax. 


297  Oval     Platter.     58     inches    in 

circumference ;  diameters 
17%  and  20  inches. 

298  Fish  Platter. 

299  Copy  of  Mather's  "Magnolia." 

1702. 

300  "Exposition   of   the   Book    of 

Job."  London  1664.  By 
Joseph  Caryl. 

301  Bill   of   sale   of   Slave  Scipio. 

Given  to  Benjamin  Rossiter 
in  1753- 

302  "The   Use  of  the  Globes  and 

the  Rudiments  of  Geogra- 
phy." 1787.  By  Daniel 
Fenning. 

303  Snuffers  and  Tray. 

304  Foot  Stove. 

305  Flint-lock     Gun.      5    feet    n 
,    inches  high. 

306  Warming  Pan.     Owned  form- 

erly by  Miss  Clara  Caldwell. 

307  Two  Tallow  Dips. 

LOANED    BY     DR.     ELLSWORTH     ELIOT 
OF   NEW   YORK   CITY. 

308  Autograph      Note      of     Rev. 

Joseph  Eliot  to  Gov.  Win- 
throp,  1673,  about  John 
Meigs'  illness. 

309  "A      Selected,      Pronouncing 

and  Accented  Dictionary." 
By  John  Elliott,  Pastor  of 
the  Church  in  East  Guilford 
and  Samuel  Johnson,  Jr., 
author  of  the  School  Dic- 
tionary Suffield,  1800. 

310  "Life  of  John  Eliot."   By  Cot- 

ton Mather,  Boston,  1691. 
Owned  by  Rev.  Joseph  Eliot 
of  Guilford. 

311  "Book    of   Sermons   and  Dis- 

courses" of  Rev.  John  Elliott, 
D.  D.,  of  East  Guilford. 

312  "The  Two   Witnesses"  1736. 

By  Dr.  Jared  Eliot  of  Kil- 
lingworth. 

313  "Sermon    on    the   Taking    of 

Cape  Breton,"  1745.  By  Dr. 
Jared  Eliot. 

314  "Essays  upon  Field  Husbandry 

in  New  England."  Boston, 
1760.  By  Dr.  Jared  Eliot. 

315  Petition  to  General    Court   in 

Handwriting,  with  Auto- 
graph, of  Rev.  John  Eliot, 
apostle  to  the  Indians. 


269 


LOANED      BY      EDWARD     EVARTS     OF 
MADISON. 

316  Carved  Desk.    From  England. 

LOANED   BY   EDWIN   J.    FLOOR. 

317  Views     of     Redcliff    Church, 

Bristol,  England. 

LOANED    BY    MRS.   FLOWERS    OF    MAD- 
ISON. 

318  Mariner's  Compass.    Over  100 

years  old. 

LOANED  BY  MRS.  ANDREW  W.  FOOTE. 

319  Pair  of  High-heeled  Silk  Slip- 

pers.    Over  loo  years  old. 

320  Tape  Loom.     Over  100  years 

old. 

321  One  Pateen.     Over  100  years 

old. 

322  "Story   of    Dick    Whittington 

and  his  Cat,"  1778.  Hart- 
ford. Adorned  with  cats. 

323  Shell  Comb.  Over  100  years  old. 

324  Commission  of  Gen.   Andrew 

Ward,  as  Colonel  in  Seventh 
Regiment  of  State  Troops. 
Signed  by  Jonathan  Trum- 
bull;  dated  March  n,  1775. 

325  Commission  of  Same,  as  Lieut. 

Colonel  in  First  Regiment. 
May  i,  1775. 

326  Commission  of  Same,  as  Brig- 

adier General  of  Second 
Brigade,  June  5,  1777. 

327  Hymn  Book.     Owned  by  Gen- 

eral Andrew  Ward,  1786. 
Containing  Watt's  "  Psalms 
of  David,"  "Spiritual 
Songs,"  and  "Lyric  Poems." 

328  Trap  Indian  Ax,  10  inches  long. 

329  Indian     Bodkin     and     Arrow 

Heads.  Dug  up  on  Foote 
farm.  Some  arrow  -  heads 
very  fine. 

330  Small    Indian  Ax,  3^  inches 

long. 

331  Two    Small    Pipes.      Sold  by 

Henry  W.  Chittenden  in  his 
store. 

332  Map  of    United  States,  about 

1814.  Done  entirely  with 
pen  and  ink  by  Miss  Cath- 
erine Beecher  when  14  years 
old.  It  shows  six  naval 
battles  of  1812.  Very  re- 
markable work. 


333  Candle   Cup.     250  years  old. 

Blue  and  white  Delft  ware. 
Bequeathed  in  a  will  in  1656. 

334  Pope's    Homer's    Iliad.      Old 

edition. 

335  Picture   of   Liberty.     Worked 

in  silk  by  Mrs.  Lyman 
Beecher  (Roxana  Foote), 
about  1790. 

LOANED   BY    MISS   KATE   FOOTE. 

336  Silver    Table-spoon.     Marked 

Louisburg  1747.  Colonel 
Andrew  Ward  commanded  a 
company  of  provincials  at 
Louisburg.  He  commuted 
his  rations  of  rum  for  money, 
with  which  he  purchased  a 
silver  spoon  for  each  of  his 
four  children  and  had  Louis- 
burg engraved  on  handles, 
that  the  children  "might 
know  how  father  used  his 
rum."  One  of  the  original 
four  table-spoons  so  marked, 
has  been  melted  and  made 
into  two  tea-spoons,  one  of 
which  is  exhibited  as  388. 

337  Silver  Pepper  Box  and   Cup. 

Belonged  to  wedding  silver 
of  Diana  Hubbard,  wife  of 
Gen.  Andrew  Ward. 

338  Embroidered      Toilet     Cover. 

Made  by  Mary  Foote,  grand- 
daughter of  Gen.  Andrew 
Ward,  1800. 

339  Toilet     Cover.      Embroidered 

by  Harriet  Foote.  1790. 

340  Linen  Towel.     Spun  by  Har- 

riet Foote,  1794. 

341  Teaspoon      and      tablespoon. 

Marked  A.  D.  W.,  for  An- 
drew and  Diana  Ward.  1730. 

342  Punch  Bowl.     1772.     Brought 

by  Justin  Foote  from  East 
Indias. 

343  Letter  from  Gen.  A.  W.  Gree- 

ley  to  Mrs.  Joseph  R.  Haw- 
ley,  with  flowers  from  Grin- 
nell  Land. 

344  Portrait  of  Eli  Foote.    Painted 

in  1773. 

345  Pillow   Lace.     Made  by  Aca- 

dian French,  brought  from 
Canada,  1755. 


2/0 


LOANED    BY    MRS.    ABBIK    FOOTE,   OF 
NORTH     BRANFORD. 

346  Embroidery.     By  Mrs.  Abigail 

Russell.     She  dyed  the  crew- 
els. 

LOANED  BY  WALLACE  G.   FOWLER. 

347  Ann-Chair.  Over  100  years  old. 

348  Hall  Chair.  Over  100  years  old. 

349  Silhouette   of    Miner    Fowler, 

Sr.,  and  wife.  Over  100  years 
old. 

350  Silhouette    of    Miner    Fowler, 

Jr.     He  was  born  in  1800. 

351  Silhouette   of   Mrs.    Gallaudet 

at  18.  She  was  born  March 
20,  1798. 

352  Pitch    Pipe.       Used   in  North 

Church. 

353  China  Plate.     150  years  old. 

354  China  Dish.     150  years  old. 

355  Mustard  Cup.     Very  Ancient. 

356  Coffee  Pot.   Over  100 years  old. 

357  Pewter  Platter. 

358  Sword.     Used   in  Train  Band 

LOANED  BY  MRS.   HENRY  FOWLER. 

359  Embroidered  Picture.  Worked 

on  satin.  Made  by  Amanda 
Elliot,  great-granddaughter 
of  Rev.  Jos.  Elliot,  Guilford. 

LOANED  BY  HENRY  FOWLER. 

360  Cane.     Owned  by  John  Elliot; 

died  1797,  aged  65. 

361  Dress.     Owned  by  Sally  (Fow- 

ler) Talmadge;  died  1855, 
aged  87. 

362  Picture      of     Lydia      Griffing. 

Wife  of  Col.  William  Hart, 
who  died  1819,  aged  24. 

LOANED  BY  AMOS    FOWLER  OF  NORTH 
GUILFORD. 

363  Worsted  Quilt.     1776.    Owned 

by  Sarah  Rossiter. 
364.  Bed  Spread.  1776.  Owned 

by  Sarah  Rossiter. 
365  Spoons.  1776.  Owned  by 

Sarah  Rossiter. 


366  Three    Small    Spoons.       1755. 

Owned  by  Benj.  and  Sarah 
Rossiter,  parents  of  above. 

367  Long  Vial.     Very  ancient. 

368  Seth    Morse's   Account  Book. 

1783.     He  was  born  1686. 

369  Old  Spectacles;  some  leather- 

bowed. 

370  Very  Small  Pewter  Porringer. 

371  Two     Thread     Cases.      Very 

old. 

LOANED     BY     MISS    ANNETTE     A. 
FOWLER. 

372  Go-Cart.     Made    by   Timothy 

Seward.  Nearly  100  years 
old. 

373  Reel.     Made    of    oak.      Pre- 

sented to  Ruth  (Lee)  Benton 
by  her  father,  Capt.  Samuel 
Lee. 

374  Glass  Decanter  and  Tumbler. 

in  family  over  80  years. 

375  "Sermon      at     Ordination     of 

Rev.  Timothy  Stone  in 
Goshen."  By  Rev.  Amos 
Fowler,  1768. 

376  Picture   and  Hymn  on  Death 

of  President  W.  H.  Harri- 
rison.  By  Leander  Griffin. 

377  Misses'  Stays. 

378  Dirk. 

379  Sword.      With     Motto,     "An 

Gottes  Segen  ist  alles  Gele- 
gen." 

380  Spinning  Wheel. 

381  "  Westminster    Shorter    Cate- 

chism," 1782. 

LOANED    BY   MRS.    ARTHUR    FOWLER- 

382  Large  Pewter  Platter. 

LOANED    BY    MRS.    SAMUEL    FOWLER. 

383  Rounded    Hair    Trunk.      Be- 

longed to  her  great-great- 
grandmother. 

LOANED   BY   MISS    HARRIET   FOWLER. 

384  Inlaid  Trunk  Box.     Over  125 

years  old.  Belonged  to  her 
grandmother.  Mrs.  Samuel 
Chittenden. 

385  Inlaid  Box.     125  years  old. 


2/1 


LOANED     BY     MRS.     OLIVER    FOWLER 
OF   RICHMOND    HILL,  N.  Y. 

386  "  Psalm  Book." 

LOANED    BY    MRS.     CHARLOTTE 
GREGORY. 

387  China   Card  Dish.     Belonged 

to  wife  of  Colonel  Andrew 
Ward. 

388  Silver      Teaspoon.       Marked 

"  Louisburg."     (See  336.) 

389  Silver  Shoe  Buckles.  Worn  by 

Mr.  Wyllis  Eliot  at  marriage. 

390  Pocketbook,  1771.     Owned  by 

Mr.  Wyllis  Elliot. 

391  "Homilies."     "Appointed    to 

be  read  in  Churches."  Lon- 
don 1623.  Belonging  to 
Eliot  family. 

392  Prayer-book  and  Bible.  Bound 

together,  1764.  With  family 
record  of  Eliot  family  and 
that  of  Gen.  Andrew  Ward. 

393  Linen  Lawn  Stock  with  Silver 

Buckle.  Worn  by  Mr.  Wyl- 
lis Eliot  at  marriage,  1763. 

394  Silk  Waistcoat.     Worn  by  Mr. 

Wyllis  Eliot  at  marriage. 

395  Small  Dish.     Once  owned  by 

Miss  Clara  Caldwell. 

396  Thousand-Legged  Table. 

LOANED    BY   PHINEAS    GRISWOLD    OF 
MADISON. 

397  Family  Bible,  1766.   Owned  by 

Giles  Griswold,  born  1723. 

LOANED    BY    MRS.     GEORGE    L.    GRIS- 
WOLD. 

398  Silhoutte  of  Charlotte  Griffing. 

First  wife  of  Henry  W.  Chit- 
tended. 

LOANED     BY    MRS.      JOHN     GRISWOLD 
OF   MADISON. 

399  Old  Platter.     Formerly  owned 

by  Meigs  family,  at  whose 
house  Lafayette  ate  a  bowl 
of  bread  and  milk  during 
Revolution.  (See  906.) 

400  Blue  China  Plate. 

LOANED   BY   JOHN   GRISWOLD. 

401  Hour    Glass.      In    house    for 

years,  and  old  50  years  ago. 


LOANED     BY     MISS    MARY    GRISWOLD. 

402  Commission   to   Samuel    Lee, 

Jr.,  as  captain  of  Home 
Guard,  given  by  Governor 
Trumbull,  1783. 

403  Silver  Tablespoon.     140  years 

old. 

LOANED  BY  MRS.  LUCY  HALE. 

404  Pewter  Platter  and  Wine  Tank- 

ard. 

LOANED  BY  DR.  N.  GREGORY  HALL. 

405  "  Psalterium,"  Hagonae  inaedi- 

bus.  Thomas  Anshelmi  Ba- 
densis  Meuse ;  Decembri, 
MDXXII.  Bound  in  wood 
and  sheep-skin. 

406  Rector  William's  Chair.      He 

was  President  of  Yale  Col- 
lege, 1726  to  1739. 

407  "  New  England  Primer."  Hart- 

ford, 1843. 

LOANED  BY  GEORGE  W.  HULL. 

408  Tea-pot.    Once  owned  by  Mrs. 

Hull's  grandmother,  Mrs. 
Huldah  (Chapman)  Bishop. 

LOANED  BY  MRS.  GEORGE  W.  HULL. 

409  Spectacles.      Belonged    to  her 

great-great-grandfather. 

410  French    Penny,    1722.     Found 

under  ice  house. 

LOANED  BY  MRS.  J.  MEIGS  HAND. 

411  Portrait  of  Jonathan  Meigs  of 

Madison;  lived  1778 -1853. 

LOANED  BY  COL.  T.  W.  HIGGINSON,  OF 
CAMBRIDGE,  MASS. 

412  Pedigree  of  Mildred  Manning, 

mother  of  Henry  Whitfield. 

LOANED    BY  MRS.   EUGENE  HILL,    OF 
NORTH  GUILFORD. 

413  Wine  Chest.     Over   200  years 

old.  Brought  from  China  to 
England  by  Capt.  Baldwin 
and  came  with  his  family  to 
the  United  States.  Used  in 
Revolution  by  surgeon,  a 
descendant. 

414  Pitcher. 

415  Mug.     Both  of  these  brought 

from  China  by  Capt.  William 
Baldwin. 


2/2 


LOANED    HY   GEORGE  HILL,   OF  NORTH 
GU1LFORD. 

416  Leave  of  Absence  of  Revolu- 

tionary Soldier. 

LOANED     BY   JAMES    HILL,    OF    NORTH 
MADISON. 

417  Grindstone.        Hewn    from    a 

granite  rock  by  Isle  Ball,  one 
of  the  first  settlers  of  North 
Madison. 

418  Candle   Stand.     125  years  old. 

419  Old  Chair. 

LOANED   BY  RALPH  HILL. 

420  Gun.     Owned  by  Miner  Brad- 

ley. 

LOANED    BY    REUBEN    HILL. 

421  Cane.     Marked  Thomas  Hill, 

1749.  Made  by  him  on  ship- 
board. 

LOANED    BY    MRS.    PORTER    HILL. 

422  Old  Brown  China  Pitcher. 

LOANED    1!Y    MRS.     GEORGE    HILL. 

423  Rocking      Chair.      Over     100 

years  old. 

LOANED    BY    CAPT.    HENRY    HILL. 

424  Mirror.     Over    200  years  old. 

Always  been  in  Hill  family. 

LOANED     BY     CHARLES     J.     HOADLEY, 
LL.   D.,    OF    HARTFORD. 

425  Engraved    Portrait   of    Bishop 

Benjamin  Hoadley  of  Win- 
chester, Eng.  Grandson  of 
Rev.  John  Hoadley  of  Guil- 
ford  in  1639.  Bishop  Hoad- 
ley was  born  1676. 

426  Engraved     Portrait    of     Arch- 

bishop John  Hoadley  of 
Dublin,  Ireland.  Brotherof 
Bishop  Benjamin  Hoadley, 
born  1678. 

427  Photograph   of  Bishop    Hoad- 

ley's  Monument  in  Winches- 
ter Cathedral. 

428  Original    Patent    of    Hoadley 

Arms,  1715. 

429  Garment.     Owned    by    Diana 

Ward,  who  married  Daniel 


Hubbard,  and  later,  Natha- 
niel Johnson.  Born  1710, 
died  1787. 

430  Bible.         Edinburgh,        1758. 

Brought  from  England  by 
Rev.  Bela  Hubbard,  D.  D., 
in  1764  and  given  to  his 
sister,  Mr.  Hoadley's  great- 
grandmother. 

431  "Sermon  Preached  Before  the 

King,"  March  31,  1717,  on 
the  '  'Nature  of  the  Kingdom 
or  Church  of  Christ,"  by 
Bishop  Benjamin  Hoadley. 

LOANED   BY   MISS   KATE   HUNT. 

432  Wooden   Cup.     Made  of  tim- 

ber from  old  State  House. 

433  Indian      Arrow      and      Spear 

Heads.     Found   near  Sluice 
•  in   Guilford,    about   twenty- 
five  years  ago. 

434  Indian  Implements,  Hatchets, 

Pestles,  etc.  Found  in  Guil- 
ford. 

435  Indian      Relics.      Found      in 

mound  in  North  Carolina, 
near  Asheville. 

436  Chair.     Over    150    years    old. 

Owned  by  Miss  Clara  Cald- 
well. 

437  Washbowl         and         Pitcher. 

Pitcher  has  names  of  13 
States,  picture  of  Washington 
Justice  and  Liberty.  Wash- 
bowl has  picture  of  Inde- 
pendence Hall. 

438  Fruit  Dish. 

439  China  Cup  and  Saucer.  Given 

her  by  Miss  Clara  Caldwell. 

440  China  Cup  and  Saucer.   Given 

her  by  same. 

441  Small  Dish. 

442  Large  Dish. 

443  Chair. 

444  L'hautbois. 

445  Washstand. 

446  Picture  of  "Entrance  to  Castle 

at  Guildford." 

447  Photograph     of     Miss    Clara 

Caldwell. 

448  Picture  of  Keep  of  Castle  at 

Guildford,  England. 

449  St.    Martha's   Church,    Guild- 

ford,  England. 


273 


LOANED    BY    SAMUEL    HUNT. 

450  Cane.     Presented  to  his  great- 

grandfather by  Gen.  Israel 
Putnam. 

LOANED    BY   MISS  JENNIE   HURTON. 

451  Sun-Dial.      About   200    ytars 

old. 

452  Blue  and  White  Plaid  Apron. 

LOANED   BY     MISS    ALVENA   HOADLEY 
OF    NORTH   GUILFORD. 

453  Espontoon,    used    in    Revolu- 

tion. Owned  by  Oliver 
Fowler. 

454  Linen      Pillow  -  Case,      1789. 

Woven  by  Lucy  Dudley. 
She  married  Oliver  Fowler 
of  North  Guilford,  1790. 

455  Towel.       Probably    150   years 

old.  Supposed  to  have  been 
brought  from  England  by 
Grace  Baron  of  Boston. 
She  married  Daniel  Foxvler 
of  North  Guilford,  Sept.  24, 
1716.  Following  names 
woven  into  it:  Anna,  Raph- 
ael, Tobias,  Leah,  Sara. 

456  Linen   Towel,    1739.      Initials 

of  five  generations  woven  in 
it  by  Lucy  Fodsic. 

457  Powder    Horn,     December   2, 

1774.  Owned  by  Eber  Hub- 
bard,  Jr.,  born  Feb.  3,  1766. 

458  "Sermon    delivered    at    Guil- 

ford, June  9,  1728."  Sun- 
day following  death  of 
Rev.  Thomas  Ruggles,  Sr. 
Preached  by  Rev.  Elisha 
Williams,  Rector  of  Yale 
College.  Mr.  Ruggles  was 
pastor  at  Guilford  1695- 
1728. 

459  "An    Answer   to   Two   Ques- 

tions," 1712.  Written  by 
Rev.  Richard  Mather  of  Bos- 
ton. 

460  "Green's   Connecticut    Regis- 

ter."    1805. 

461  "Poems  by  Phillis  Wheatley." 

Hartford,  1802.  Negro  ser- 
vant to  the  late  Mr.  John 
Wheatley,  Boston,  1772. 

462  "Register    of     the    Weather." 

1775-1810.  Mostly  taken  at 
Hamden. 


463  "Regulations    for    the    Order 

and  Discipline  of  the  United 
States  Troops."  By  Jere- 
miah Ailing. 

464  Inventory    of    the    late    Wm. 

Smith  of  Guilford,  1737. 

465  "Letter      to      Congregational 

Church  of  North  Guilford." 
From  Amos  Fowler,  pastor 
in  Guilford,  1765. 

466  'An  Appeal  from  Members  of 

the  Congregational  Church 
of  North  Guilford  to  the 
Reverend  Association  Con- 
vened at  New  Haven,"  Sep- 
tember, 1766. 

467  Paper    signed    by    Rev.    Bela 

Hubbard,   D.    D  ,   September 
25,  1766. 

468  Pillow  Case.     Marked  M.  D. 

469  "  Guide    to    Heaven."     Hart- 

ford, 1803. 

LOANED  BY  MRS.  JAMES  HUNT  OF 
LEETE'S  ISLAND. 


470 


47J 
472 


473 


474 


476 

477 
478 

479 
480 

481 
482 


Yale  Diploma  of  1722.  Given 
to  Josiah  Frisbie  of  Bran- 
ford.  Last  one  signed  by 
Rector  Timothy  Cutler. 

Tea  Table  Dialogues,  1789. 
Philadelphia. 

Powder-horn,  Cartridge-box 
and  Bayonet,  1776.  Owned 
by  Gideon  Norton  of  North 
Guilford. 

Diamond-shaped  Pane  of 
Glass,  1723.  From  first  meet- 
ing house  in  North  Guilford. 

Glazier's  Diamond.  Very  old. 
Owned  by  Gideon  Norton  of 
North  Guilford. 

Two  Silver  Tablespoons. 
Marked  M.  D.  Owned  by 
Mabel  Dudley,  who  married 
a  Russell  in  1754. 

Cotton  Gown.  Owned  bv 
Mabel  Dudley. 

Whalebone   Stays.     Very  old. 

Home-made  Linen.    Very  old. 

Hand-made  Net  Lace.  Very 
old. 

Gingerbread  Stamp.  Owned 
by  Sally  Handy. 

Pewter  Mug. 

Large  Pewter  Porringer. 


274 


483  Small  Pewter  Porringer. 

484  Old     Wooden     Plow.       From 

Horace  Norton's  farm  at 
Leete's  Island. 

485  "The      Fulfilling     of      Scrip- 

tures." By  Rev.  Robert 
Fleming,  Boston,  1745 
Owned  by  Jared  and  Will- 
iam and  Mabel  Dudley  of 
North  Guilford,  as  were  the 
following  books: 

486  "  Horace  Lyricae."     By  Isaac 

Watts,  D.  D.,  London,  tenth 
edition. 

487  "  Plain    and   Serious  Address 

to  the  Master  of  a  Family." 
By  Philip  Doddridge. 

488  "A    Few    Brief    Remarks    on 

Sundry  Points  upon  what  is 
lately  termed  New  Divinity." 
By  Israel  Holly. 

489  "  Ruin  and  Recovery  of  Man- 

kind." New  Haven,  1780; 
2d  edition,  London,  1742. 

490  Chesterfield's    "  Principles    of 

Politeness."  New  York, 
1795- 

491  "  History  of  the   Holy  Bible." 

Hartford,  1798. 

LOANED  liY    MRS.   VIRGIL    HOTCHKISS. 

492  Powder-horn,    S.   H.     Carried 

through  War  of  1812  by 
Samuel  Hotchkiss. 

493  Old  Ring.     Owned  by  Hannah 

Stone. 

494  Gold  Coin.   Belonged  formerly 

to  Abner  Stone,  1757. 

LOANED  BY  MRS.  MARIA  HUBKARD    OF 
NORTH  MADISON. 

495  Five  Pieces  of  Antique  Ware. 

LOANED   BY  MRS.  WILLIAM  ISBELL. 

496  Silhouette  of  Mindwell  Griffin 

when  21 ;  1771.  She  married 
Obadiah  Spencer,  1768. 

497  Chair;  1768.    Owned  by  Parnel 

Spencer,  daughter  of  Mind- 
well  Griffing. 

498  Green  Earthen  Toy  Cradle.    70 

years  old.  Given  to  Miss 
Julia  Hotchkiss  (Mrs.  Wm. 
Hale)  when  two  years  old. 


499  Mirror.     Found  in  Ozias  Whe- 

don's  house  (where  Music 
Hall  now  stands)  when  it  was 
taken  down. 

500  Warming  Pan.   Owned  by  Sim- 

eon Chittenden,  grandfather 
of  the  late  Hon.  S.  B.  Chit- 
tenden. Tied  with  bow  of 
ribbon.  Owned  by  Mrs. 
Ruggles  Landon. 

LOANED    BY    MRS.  T.  R.  IVES,   WEST 
CORNWALL,  CONN. 

501  Wedding  Slippers;  1765.  Worn 

by  Rhoda  Leete  at  marriage. 

502  Work    Basket.        Owned     by 

Rhoda  Leete.  Probably  a 
bridal  gift. 

LOANED    BY   REV.    EDWIN  JESSUP,   OF 
NORTH    GUILFORD. 

503  China.      Owned    formerly   by 

wife  of  Gen.  Augustus  Col- 
lins, of  North  Guilford,  and 
now  by  her  great-grandson. 

LOANED  BY  MRS.  OLIVE  JOHNSON. ' 

504  Bell  Metal   Skillet.     Over  150 

years  old.  "  Praises  God  for 
all "  on  handle. 

LOANED     BY     JOHN     G.     JOHNSON     OF 
NORTH   GUILFORD. 

505  Gun,    Canteen  (marked    Isaac 

C.  Fowler)  and  Bayonet. 
Owned  by  Reuben  Johnson, 
in  Captain  Lee's  company 
during  Revolution. 

506  Blacksmith's    Reamer.     Made 

by  Isaac  Johnson  of  North 
Guilford,  100  years  ago. 

507  Cane.     175  years  old. 

508  China  Plate.     100  years  old. 

509  Embroidered     Muslin    Dress. 

Made  by  Caroline  Sharp  of 
Massachusetts,  1794. 

510  Cartridge  Box. 

LOANED   BY   MISS   MARY   JOHNSON. 

511  Pewter  Basin  and  Cup. 

512  T.nder  Box   and    Candlestick 

combined.  Containing  steel, 
flint  and  tinder. 


275 


513  Firescreen.   Made  and  Painted 

by  Polly  Flower,  daughter 
of  Joel;  lived  1796-1824. 

514  Box.         Painted      by       Polly 

Flower. 

515  Slippers.      Worn      by      Polly 

Flower  when  bridesmaid  at 
wedding  of  Rev.  Thomas 
Gallaudet  and  Sophia  Fow- 
ler. 

516  "  Sermon  in  Memory  of  Capt. 

William  Whittlesey  and  oth- 
ers, Drowned  at  Sea."  1807. 
Preached  in  Madison  by 
Rev.  John  Elliott,  D.  D. 

LOANED     BY    MRS.    RICHARD    KELSEY. 

517  Double  Chair.     Called  lovers' 

chair.  Once  owned  by  De- 
borah (Pendlelon)  Fowler, 
wife  of  Noah.  He  died  1825, 
aged  92. 

518  Branch  from  Box  Bush.  Grown 

from  a  branch  that  decorated 
the  table  when  Gen.  La  Fay- 
ette  was  a  guest  of  Noah 
Fowler  at  Guilford  in  1824. 
Original  tree  was  given  to 
Noah  Fowler  by  Ruth  Bur- 
gess when  he  was  courting 
her  at  the  old  Burgess  place. 

LOANED    BY     MRS.    WATSON    KELSEY. 

519  Brown  China  Plate,  Cup  and 

Saucer.    Over  100  years  old. 

LOANED   BY  W.  S.  KELSEY. 

520  Four  Chairs.     Owned  by  Sam- 

uel Burgess,  born  1774. 

521  L'hautbois.    Owned  by  Samuel 

Burgess. 

522  Gun  and  Bayonet.     Very  old. 

Owned    by  Samuel   Burgess. 

523  Old  Chair. 

524  Child's  Chair. 

525  Iron    Skillet.     Very  old.      Be- 

longed to  Hooker  Banlett. 

526  Cartridge  Box. 

527  Large  Brass  Andirons. 

LOANED  BY  MRS.   LEWIS  A.  KIMHER1.Y. 

528  "  New  England  Primer;"  1817, 

Middletown.  Used  by  Mrs. 
Amos  Griswold. 

LOANED    BY    MRS.   ELI  KIMHERLY. 

529  Pictures  of  Lorenzo  Dow  and 

wife  Peggy;  1815. 


LOANED  IiY  MRS.   KNOWLES,   OK  MADI- 
SON. 

530  Chair.     150  years  old. 
LOANED  BY  MRS.  THOMAS  H.  LANDON. 

531  Pipe  Case.    Wooden,  very  old. 

532  Portrait  of  Thomas  Hart.    Born 

May  27,  1723,  died  Feb.  26, 
1813. 

LOANED    BY    S.   WILMOT   LANDON. 

533  Charter  of  St.  Alban's  Lodge, 

No.  38,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  1771. 

534  Chair.     Belonged  to  his  great- 

grandmother  Stone;   1732. 

LOANED  BY  CHARLES  C.   LATHROP,  OF 
BROOKLYN,    N.   Y. 

535  Pocket-book.     Made  and  used 

by  Jeremiah  Lathrop. 

LOANED  BY  MISS  CLARA  LEE. 

536  Powder-horn.      Borne  in  Revo- 

lution by  Eber  Parmelee,  her 
grandfather. 

537  Wooden     Spoon.       Over    100 

years  old.  Made  by  the  In- 
dian, Picket,  .who  captured 
Baron  Dieskan,  at  the  battle 
of  Lake  George. 

538  Wooden  Skimmer.     Made   by 

Picket. 

539  Linen  Towel.     Woven  by  Bar- 

ney Kane.  Left  in  Loom  at 
beginning  of  Revolution  and 
finished  when  he  returned  at 
close. 

540  Linen  Pillow  Case.     Hand  em- 

broidered. Owned  by  John 
and  Jane  Parmelee,  married 
1740. 

541  Spread  of  Red   Figured  Hum- 

hum.  Owned  by  Miss  Lee's 
grandmother.  Ruth  Parmelee 
Formerly  bed-curtains. 

542  Pewter   Mug    with    Base   and 

Handle. 

543  Blue  and  White    Plaid   Linen 

Handkerchief.  Home-made. 
Owned  by  Mrs.  Achsah  Lee. 
Born  1784. 

544  Knitting  Sheath. 
!   545     Knee  Buckles. 

!   546     "  Sermon  at  Ordination  of  D?. 
John  Elliot;"    1791. 


276 


LOANED    BY    MRS.    J.    T.    AND     MISS    I.. 
I!.     LKF.    OF    MADISON. 

547  Printed       "Lamentation      for 

those  who  died  in  the  Parish 
of  East  Guilford  in  1751." 

548  Silk    Ouiltcd    Petticoat.      150 

years  old. 

549  Pair  Brass  Candlesticks.  Over 

100.  years  old. 

550  Two  China  Plates.    Delt-ware. 

Over  150  years  old. 

551  Pitcher.     Over  100  years  old. 

552  Silver    Glaze    Pitcher.      Over 

100  years  old. 

LOANED    BY    MRS.    JUSTIN    LEE. 

553  Spectacles.     Iron-bowed. 

554  Pewter  Plate.     Found  by  Mr. 

Lee  on  his  premises.  Prob- 
ably belonged  to  William 
Woodward. 

LOANED    BY    MAJOR    \V.    H.    LEE. 

555  Warming  Pan.     150  years  old. 

556  Case  of  Arrowheads.     Found 

on  his  premises. 

LOANED  BY  MRS.  SAMUEL  W.  LEETE 
OF  LEETE'S  ISLAND. 

557  Two  Tablespoons.    Marked  D. 

L.  Owned  by  Daniel  Leete, 
whose  house  was  burned  by 
British,  June  18,  1781. 

558  Small  Trunk.     Contained  sil- 

ver and  papers  and  carried 
when  fleeing  to  woods  with 
children,  June  18,  1781,  by 
Charity  Leete,  wife  of 
Daniel. 

559  Mortar  and  Pestle.    Owned  by 

Daniel  Leete. 

560  Four  Small  Teaspoons.Marked 

L.  H.  Owned  by  Lois 
Hand,  second  wife  of  John 
Goldsmith;  married  1808. 

561  Chair.       Owned       by       Sally 

Handy,  a  Guilford  cente- 
narian. 

562  Square   Hair-Covered   Trunk. 

Owned  by  Sally  Handy. 


LOANED     BY    DEACON     E.     WALTER 
LEETE  OF  LKETE'S  ISLAND. 

563  Section  of  Rafter.     From  Dan- 

iel Leete's  house,  burned  by 
British. 

564  Pair    of    China    Mugs,    1764. 

Purchased  for  Sarah  Dudley 
in  West  Indies. 

565  Dining  Plate.     Used  in  dinner 

at  ordination  of  Rev.  Thomas 
Wells  Bray  of  North  Guil- 
ford, December  31,  1766. 

566  Silver   Teaspoon.     Owned    by 

Sarah  Dudley. 

567  Cane.     Owned  by  Dea.  Daniel 

Leete,  who  died  1772. 

568  Pair      Gold      Sleeve-Buttons. 

Owned  by  Dea.  Ambrose 
Leete,  died  1809. 

569  Piece      of     Wedding     Dress. 

Owned  by  Rachel  Norton, 
who  married  Col.  Timothy 
Stone,  1723. 

570  Linen  Towel.     Owned  by  Col. 

Timothy  and  Mrs.  Rachel 
Stone. 

571  Skillet.       Owned       by       Col. 

Timothy  Stone. 

572  Sermon,     1770.     Preached    at 

Abel  Chittenden's  funeral,  by 
Rev.  Thomas  Wells  Bray  of 
North  Guilford. 

573  New  England  Primer.     Out  of 

which  Sarah  Dudley  learned 
to  read.  She  was  born  1746. 

574  Platter.      Owned      by      Sarah 

Dudley. 

575  Stone  Jar.     Over  100  years  old. 

Owned  by  Ambrose  and 
Miranda  Leete. 

576  Pillow   Case.     Marked    S.   D. 

in  blue  letters  for  Sarah 
Dudley,  grandmother  of  S. 
B.  Chittenden,  Sr. 

577  Two  Large  Spoons.    Belonged 

to  Ambrose  and  Miranda 
(Chittenden)  Leete,  married 
1773- 

578  Ladies'      Iron      Hair      Comb. 

Made  by  a  blacksmith  and 
recommended  by  physicians 
to  cure  headache. 

579  Bundle  of  Flax.     Taken  from 

scaffold  in  his  barn,  where  it 
has  probably  lain  for  more 
than  60  years. 


2/7 


LOANED   BY    CALVIN    M.   LEETE    OF 
LEETE'S  ISLAND. 

580  Silver    Spoon.     1705.     Owned 

by  Pelatiah  and  Abigail 
Leete.  He  was  grandson  of 
Gov.  William  Leete. 

581  Cannon    Ball.     Found  in    the 

field  at  Leete's  Island  after 
Revolution. 

582  Board.      From    old    Ambrose 

Leete  house,  with  a  bullet 
hole  in  it,  from  a  shot  fired 
by  Tories,  1781. 

583  "Two  Sermons  on  Baptism." 

By  Richard  Ely  of  North 
Guilford,  1772. 

584  "  Discourse  Preparatory  to  the 

Choice  of  a  Minister."  By 
Thomas  Foxcraft,  Boston, 
1727. 

585  "Two   Sermons   on  Brotherly 

Love."  By  William  Seward 
of  Killingworth,  1770. 

586  Sermon  by  Rev.  Jonathan  Todd 

of  Madison  on  the  "  Death 
of  Capt.  James  Meigs  of 
East  Guilford,"  1739. 

587  "An  Answer  to  Mr.  Robbins' 

Plain  Narrative."  By  Rev. 
Jonathan  Todd,  1748. 

LOANED   BY   SIDNEY   W.    LEETE. 

588  Pair    of    Tongs.       Made    for 

lighting  and  cleaning  pipe, 
by  Thelus  Ward,  in  black- 
smith shop  on  Green. 

589  Stone     in     Shape     of      Foot. 

"Found  near  Sachem's  Head, 
so,  probably,  Sachem's  Foot, 
or  formerly  property  of  Foote 
family." 

LOANED   BV   MRS.    EDWIN    LEETE. 

590  Piece  of  Gold  Lace.    Worn  on 

wedding  dress  of  Lydia 
Wilford,  wife  of  Josiah 
Linsley.  It  came  from  En- 
gland with  her.  She  was 
great-great-grand  mother  of 
present  owner.  175  years 
old. 

591  Teapot.     Small,   old     pattern. 

150  years  old. 


LOANED  BY  MRS.    R.    M.    LEETE  OF 
LEETE'S  ISLAND. 

592  Linen  Pillow  Case.     100  years 

old.  Made  entirely  by  Lucy 
Chittenden,  (Mrs.  Silas  Nor- 
ton of  Moose  Hill,)  her 
grandmother. 

LOANED   BY  JOHN   E.    LEWIS   OF 

MADISON. 

593  Two  Linen  Towels.     Over  80 

years  old.  Made  by  Martha 
and  Sally  Doan,  the  latter 
afterward  married  Levi 
Lewis,  father  of  loaner. 

LOANED     BY     MRS.     J.     E.     LEWIS    OF 
MADISON. 

594  Piece    of    Homespun    Linen. 

In  Mrs.  Lewis's  possession 
twenty-four  years,  being 
given  her  by  her  aunt  Polly 
Beam,  who  died,  aged  95. 
Owned  by  Polly  Beam's 
grandmother. 

LOANED    BY    DOUGLAS    LOPER. 

595  Looking-glass.     Frame      cov- 

ered with  white  satin,  cuii- 
ously  embroidered,  plush 
back.  Sent  to  England  to 
be  framed.  150  years  old. 

LOANED    BY     DBA.     WM.      MALTliY     OF 
NORTHFORD. 

596  Silver       Porringer.       Brought 

from  England  by  the  Apostle 
John  Eliot,  and  given  to  his 
son,  Rev.  Joseph  Eliot. 

LOANED      BY      MORRISON       MEIGS      OF 
MADISON. 

597  Pair    of    Brass    Candlesticks. 

75  years  old.  Owned  by 
Miss  Chloe  Bishop  at  time 
of  marriage  to  William  Coe 
of  Madison. 

LOANED     BY     SAMUEL     S.      MEIGS     OF 
MADISON. 

598  Geneva  Bible,  1587. 

599  Cane.     150  years  old. 

600  Inventory  of  Estate  of  Deacon 

Timothy  Meigs,  1751. 


278 


60 1  Collection    of  Deeds,    1676   to 

1707. 

602  Marriage  Publishment  of  John 

French  and  Mary  Meigs. 
About  200  years  old. 

603  Petition  of  East  Guilford  to  be 

a  Society,  1703. 

604  Copy  of  Will  of  Deacon  John 

French,  1745. 

605  Picture  of  Meigs' House.    Old- 

est house  in  Madison. 
Painted  by  Mary  E.  Day. 

606  Commission  from  Gov.  Salton- 

stall  to  Capt.  Janna  Meigs, 
Benjamin  Hand  and  John 
French,  1718. 

LOANED      1!Y      MRS.      LURANDA     MEIGS 
OF    MADISON. 

607  Two    Sermons.     Delivered    in 

East  Guilford  by  Jonathan 
Todd,  Pastor  of  the  Church 
there,  February  7,  1781. 

LOANED    I!Y    MRS.     WILLIAM    MEIGS. 

CioS  Jar  from  West  Indies.  Owned 
by  Capt.  Richard  Weld. 

509  Wash  Bowl  and  Pitcher. 
About  80  years  old.  Be- 
longed to  Mrs.  Walkley, 
mother  of  Mrs.  Erastus 
Meigs. 

LOANED    BY    EDWARD    E.    MEIGS    OF 
MADISON. 

(no  Invitation  of  Richard  Willard 
to  a  Juvenile  Ball.  At 
Scranton's  ballroom,  East 
Guilford,  Sept.  2,  1819. 

LOANED    BY    BEVERLY    MONROE. 

6 1 1  Portrait  of  Abigail  Rose  Clark. 

Over  100  years  old. 

612  Patch-box.     Seen    in    portrait 

above. 

613  Mugs.     Owned  by  Mrs.  Betsy 

Monroe. 

614  Four  Teaspoons.    Belonged  to 

Mrs.  BeverlyMonroe's  grand- 
father, John  Stone.  Marked 
J.  M.  S. 


615  Glass   Tumbler,  with  Colored 

Figures.  Belonged  to  Miss 
Grace  Starr;  as  did  616  to 
619  inclusiv%. 

616  Saucer. 

617  Cup  and  Saucer. 

618  Small  Plate. 

619  China  Dish. 

620  Small  Cup. 

621  Covered  China  Mug.  Belonged 

to  his  Grandmother  Clark. 

622  Box.     Owned  by   Miss  Grace 

Starr. 

623  "  Worshipper's  Assistant."  By 

Solomon  Howe,  1779. 

624  Shawl.      Belonged      to     Miss 

Grace  Starr. 

625  Manuscript  Sermons.   Of  Rev. 

John  Eells  of  Glastonbury. 

626  Hymn        Book.        Containing 

Songs  of  Praise,  Penitential 
Cries  and  the  Song  of  Songs. 
Belonged  to  his  grand- 
mother. 150  years  old. 

627  L'hautbois.     100  years  old. 

LOANED  BY  J.  H.  MONROE. 

628  Collection  of  old  Copper  Coins. 

LOANED    BY    REV.   W.   E.   B.   MOORE,   OF 
NORTH  MADISON. 

629  Indian  Ax-head. 

LOANED    BY  HENRY  M.   MORGAN,   OF 
LONGMEADOW,  MASS. 

630  Photograph  of  Louisburg,  Can. 

631  Photograph  of  Interior  of  Bris- 

tol (England)  Cathedral. 

632  Photograph  of  St.  Mary  Red- 

cliffe  Church,  Bristol. 

633  Photograph  of  Bristol  from  the 

Perry  Road. 

LOANED    BY    MRS.   ALPHA   MORSE. 

634  Tea-pot.     Formerly  owned  by 

grandmother  of  Mr.  Charles 
Fowler. 

635  Old  Plate.     Given  her  by  one 

of  the  town  poor  from  North 
Guilford. 

636  Needle-book.     Once  owned  by 

Miss  Patty  Galpin's  mother, 
of  Woodbury.  Over  150  years 
old. 


279 


LOANED   BY  MRS.  ELIZA  MUNGER. 

637  Chair.     Belonged  to  Walter  P*. 

Munger's  grandfather. 

638  Silhouette  of  Walter  P.  Mun- 
ger,  aged  1 1 . 

LOANED  BY  FRANK  MORSE. 

639  Indian  Tomahawk  and  Arrow- 

heads.     Found  in  Guilford. 

LOANED  BY  MRS.  ELIZABETH  MUNSON. 

640  Embroidered   Coverlet.     Over 

loo  years  old. 

641  Bayonet    and    Cartridge    Box. 

.  Used  in  Revolution. 

LOANED   BY   GEORGE   NETTLETON. 

642  China  Plate.     100  to  150  years 

old. 

643  Cup. 

644  Pewter  Porringer. 

645  Pewter  Plate. 

646  Cider     Mug.     All     these    be- 

longed to  Jemima  Pierson, 
who  married  Nathan  Gris- 
wold,  1780. 

LOANED    BY    MRS.    JOHN    NORTON. 

647  Clothes   Pin.     Over  100  years 

old. 

648  Medicine  Vial  to  hang  on  bed- 

side. 

LOANED    BY     MRS.    A.     E.    NORTON    OF 
NORTH    GUILFORD. 

649  Silhouette. 

650  Continental  Money. 

LOANED   BY     MISS     LUCY    NORTON   OF 
MADISON. 

651  "Sermon   by    Rev.     Dr.    John 

Elliott  at  death  of  Dr.  Jon- 
athan Todd,"  1819. 

652  Tobacco  and  Pipe  Case.    Used 

by  Dr.  Jonathan  Todd  of 
East  Guilford,  Miss  Norton's 
grandfather;  100  years  old. 

653  Profile    Picture    of    Rev.    Dr. 

John  Elliott  and  Wife,  taken 
nearly  100  years  ago.  He 
was  pastor  at  Madison  (1791- 
1824). 


654  Profile    Picture   of    "Squire" 

William  Todd,  1802. 

655  Powder  Horn,  1819.    H.  L.  N. 

656  Linen    Bed    Curtain    Drapery. 

Over  100  years  old.  Used 
by  Mrs.  Dr.  Jonathan  Todd. 
The  rest  of  it  is  in  the  N.  H. 
Colony  Historical  Society's 
rooms.  On  it  battles  are  de- 
picted. This  piece  has  on 
it  medallions  of  the  Prince 
of  Nassau  De  Crillon,  and 
Gen.  Elliott,  also  two  battles 
with  the  inscriptions  "The 
glorious  defence  of  Gibraltar 
and  Destruction  of  the  float- 
ing Batteries  by  the  brave 
Elliott  and  his  heroic  garri- 
son," and  "Your  fame,  in- 
glorious France  and  Spain, 
sunk  by  Elliott's  coup  de 
main,  1782." 


LOANED    BY    MRS.  ANSON    NORTON    OF 
NORTH    MADISON. 

657  Indian  Pestle. 

658  Chair.     200  years  old. 

659  Wooden  Bowl.     125  years  old. 

660  Indian  Arrowheads.    Found  in 

North  Madison. 

661  Indian  Relics.   Found  in  North 

Madison. 

LOANED    BY    EDWARD   NORTON. 

662  Pictures  of  Old  House  which 

stood  where  Edward  Nor- 
ton's now  stands.  Framed 
with  wood  of  old  house, 
which  is  said  to  have  been 
the  third  built  in  Guilford. 

663  Old    Rocking   Chair.     Owned 

by  Mrs.  Bela  Fowler  (Cla- 
rissa Hilliard),  married  1797. 

664  Knee  Buckles.  Worn  by  Sam- 

uel Hotchkiss,  1731. 

LOANED     BY   WILLIAM    NELSON 
NORTON. 

665  Stone  Pestle.  Used  by  Indians. 

LOANED     BY   WALTER   W.    NORTON. 

666  Flint-lock     Musket.      Carried 

through  the  Revolution  by 
Abram  Norton. 


280 


LOANED    1!Y    DEACON     JOHN    WILLIAM 
NORTON. 

667  Circular  Backed  Armchair. 
Belonged  to  Rev.  John  Hart, 
first  minister  in  East  Guil- 
ford,  1707;  also  first  gradu- 
ate who  studied  at  Yale  Col- 
lege, 1703;  died  1731. 

66S  Cup  and  Saucer.  Belonged  to 
Samuel  Russell,  son  of  Rev. 
S.  Russell;  married  1753  to 
Deborah  Baldwin. 

66(>  Silver  Spoon.  Belonged  to 
Mary  (Hart)  Dudley;  married 
1777- 

670  Silver    Spoon.       Belonged    to 

Ruth  Hart,  sister  of  above. 

671  Table     Cloth.      Belonged     to 

Ebenezer  and  Deborah (Crut- 
tenden)  Bartlett;  married 
1729. 

672  Milk  Cup.     In  shape  of  cow. 

Belonged  to  Elizabeth  Rus- 
sell; married  Ambrose  Dud- 
ley, 1783. 

673  Horn-book.   Belonged  to  Mary 

Hart.  Probably  over  200 
years  old. 

674  Pillow-case?.       Belonged      to 

Elizabeth  and  Abigail  Rus- 
sell before  April  29,  1783. 

675  Two  Mugs.     Confiscated  from 

contraband  trade  with  Tories 
on  Long  Island  in  Revolu- 
tion. 

LOANED  ]!Y  WALLACE   I).   NORTON. 

676  Map    of    Original    Layout    of 

Guilford.  Draughted  by  him- 
self. 

LOANED  BY  MRS.   JOSEPH  NORTON. 

677.     Old  Cotton  Gown. 

LOANED  BY  FRED  E.   NORTON. 

678  Very  Large  Braided  Rug. 

LOANED    BY  MRS.  WILLIAM    NELSON 
NORTON. 

679  "The  Foundation  of  Christian 

Religion  Gathered  into  Sixe 
Principles."     London,  1636. 
6So     Deed   from  Benajah    Stone  to 
William  Stone. 


LOANED     BY    MRS.    WILLIAM    NORTON. 

68 1  Earthen  Bean  Pot.     Owned  by 

William  Norton,  Class  of  '29, 
Yale  College,  as  did  all  the 
following  articles: 

682  Small  Round  Table. 

683  China  Teapot. 

684  Hand  Trunk. 

685  Small  China  Dish. 

686  Tea  Caddy. 

687  China  Loving  Cup. 

688  Milk  Pitcher. 

689  Large  Tumbler. 

690  Wine  Glass. 

691  Cup  and  Saucer. 

692  Cup  and  Saucer. 

693  Cup  and  Saucer. 

694  Clip  and  Saucer. 

695  Two  Blue  China  Plates,  with 

inscription,  "Landing  of 
Gen.  La  Fayette  at  Castle 
Garden.  Aug.  16,  1824." 

LOANED  BY  JARED  P.  PARKER. 

696  "  Fools  in  their  Folly  the  Most 

Dangerous  Companions  "  By 
Elijah  Norton,  of  Guilford: 
1785- 

697  "The  Life  of  Faith."    By  Rev. 

Joseph  Eliot,  pastor  at  Guil- 
ford (1664-1694). 

LOANED  BY  JOHN  C.   PARKER. 

698  Chair.      Owned   by   Ebenezer 

Hotchkiss;  born  1723. 

LOANED  BY  MRS.  JOHN  PARMELEE. 

699  Metal  Sugar  Bowl.     Very  old. 

In  family  over  a  century. 

LOANED   BY    WILLIAM    H.      PARMELEE 
OF    MADISON. 

700  English  Rifle.      150  years  old. 

Formerly  a  flint-lock. 

LOANED  BY    MRS.   HORACE  PARMELEE. 

701  Hand  Sewing.    80  years  old. 

702  Teapot.     80  years  old. 


28 1 


LOANED  BY  D.   K.  FARM  ELBE. 

703  "Code    of    Laws    of     1650." 

Printed  at  Hartford,  1836. 

704  "The  Balance  and  Columbian 

Repository."  Hudson,  N. 
Y.,  1803. 

LOANED    BY   MISS    ELIZABETH    PAR- 
MELEE. 

705  Chair.     One  of  a  set  brought 

from  England    by  Governor 

years  ago. 

Some  of  the  set  are  in  the 
pulpit  of  the  Third  Congre- 
gational Church,  Guilford. 

LOANED   BY   MRS.    PERRY. 

706  Sampler,   "Harriot     Collens." 

Made  it  in  1804.  With  fam- 
ily pedigree,  1762-1801. 

LOANED   BY   GEORGE   A.    POLLARD   OF 
MADISON. 

707  Table.     Which     belonged     to 

Gov.  Wolcott  and  at  which 
George  Washington  dined. 

708  Seraphine.     Brought  from  En- 

gland 1 50  years  ago. 

LOANED    BY    JUDGE    CHARLES   H. 
POST. 

709  Town  Records,  Book  A,  1645. 

These  records  written  by 
Gov.  William  Leete. 

710  "Guilford's  Proprietors'  Rec- 

ords," Vol.  i.  "  Booke  of 
the  Terryers,"  1645. 

711  "Booke   for   the  More  Fixed 

Orders  for  the  Plantation." 
Town  Record,  vol.  B. 

712  "  Book    of     Deeds,"    Vol.    I. 

Containing  copies  of  bids 
from  Indians. 

713  Ballot    Box.     Now    used    for 

"  State  Ticket."  Made  from 
panels  of  pulpit  doors  of  Old 
Church  on  Green. 

LOANED    BY    MISS     MABEL    REDFIELD 
OF   MADISON. 

714  Pewter   Platters.     200   to   300 

years  old. 


LOANED    BY   ORRIN     D.    REDFIELD   OF 
MADISON. 

715  Pocket  Gin  Flask.     Over  100 

years  old. 

LOANED    BY  MRS.  MARY  G.  REDFIELD. 

716  Embroidered       Bed      Spread. 

Made  by  Mrs.  Elias  Grave 
about  1770. 

717  Sword. 

718  Old   Papers.     Connected  with 

Revolution.  Carried  by 
Captain  Elias  Grave  in  Rev- 
olution. He  was  born  1733. 

719  Commission  of    Ensign  Elias 

Grave,  etc.  Jan.  20,  1777. 
Signed  by  Jonathan  Trum- 
bull. 

720  Commission    of    Lieut.    John 

Grave.  1709.  Signed  by 
Gurdon  Saltonstall.  Lieut. 
John  Grave  was  born  1658 
and  died  1726. 

721  Order  from  General  Court  at 

Hartford,  Oct.  12,  1682.  To 
Guilford  Constables.  Signed 
by  Joh/i  Allyn,  Secretary. 
73*  Order  of  Court.  For  Settling 
the  Boundaries  of  Saybrook 
and  Kenilworth,  1692. 

723  Permission    to    Drain   Swamp 

above  Tuxis  Pond,  1693. 

724  Deeds   of   Land    in    Guilford. 

Granted  John  Grave,  1681 
and  1688. 

LOANED   BY    HENRY   PYNCHON 
ROBINSON. 

725  Oaken   Arm-chair,    tape  loom 

back.  Belonged  to  Thomas 
Robinson,  1640. 

726  Letter   from  Jonathan  Pitman 

to  Thomas  Robinson,  Nov. 
12,  1675. 

727  Leather  Wallet,  with  Colonial 

and  Continental  Money  of 
Col.  Samuel  Robinson. 
Earliest  date,  1744. 

728  Foot-Stove. 

729  Warming  Pan. 

730  Wooden  Pestle.     Owned  once 

by  Col.  Samuel  Robinson. 

731  Iron  Pestle. 


282 


732  Deed  of  Sale  of  Slave,  Cuffey, 

by  Nathaniel  Bishop. 

733  "Pottery  and   Porcelain."     By 

Charles  Wyllys  Elliot.     Ap- 
pleton  &  Co.,  1878. 

734  Samp      Mortar.     Owned      by 

Thomas  Robinson,  1640. 

735  School    Copy   Book    of    Rev. 

Henry  Robinson,   March  21, 
1802. 

LOANED    EY    MRS.    GEORGE    ROSS. 

736  "Sermon  at  Ordination  of  Rev. 

John      Elliott."      1791.      By 
Rev.  Achilles  Mansfield. 

LOANED     BY     MRS.     F.      W.      ROSSITER 
OF    NORTH    GUILFOKD. 

737  Arm    Chair.     Over   200  years 

old. 

738  Glass  Tea  Canister.     Over  200 

years  old. 

739  Linen  Towel.     Over  200  years 

old.  Owned  -by  Timothy 
Baldwin,  1680. 

740  Bed   Spread.     Over  200  years 

old.     Owned  by  same. 

LOANED   BY     BENJAMIN"   ROSSITER    OF 
NORTH    GUILFORD. 

741  Powder  Horn.     Used  in  Revo- 

lution. 

LOANED  BY  MISS  ADELINE  ROSSITER 
OF  NORTH  GUILFORD. 

742  Tea-pot  and  Pepper-box. 

LOANED  BY  MRS.  EDGAR  ROSSITER 
OF  NORTH  GUILFORD. 

743  Plate.       Belonged      to      Abel 

Chittenden,  who  died  while 
at  Yale  College,  1770,  aged 
20. 

744  Wooden  Sugar  Bowl. 

745  Pewter  Basin. 

LOANED    BY    MRS.    ANN    SCRANTON    OF 
MADISON. 

74f'     Coffee  Pot.     TOO  years  old. 

747  Earthen  Mug.  Over  100  years 
old.  With  Masonic  em- 
blems. 

743  Two  Earthen  Cups  and 
Saucers.  Over  100  years 
old. 


LOANED   BB    MRS.    T.  S.    SCRANTON   OF 
MADISON. 

749  "  Pilgrim's  Progress,"  II.  Part. 

1744;  I7th  edition. 

750  "Commentary  on  the  Epistle 

of  James."  By  Thomas 
Manton,  1651. 

751  ''Explanation   of    Assembly's 

Catechism."  By  Thomas 
Vincent,  1708. 

752  "The  Safety  of  Appearing  at 

the  Judgment  in  the  Right- 
eousness of  Christ."  By 
Solomon  Stoddard,  1729. 

753  "The     Communicant's    Com- 

panion." By  Matthew  Henry, 
1831. 

754  Cuff    Buttons.       Of     Deacon 

Thomas  Stone,  1680. 

755  Handle  of  Door  of  First  Meet- 

ing House  in  East  Guilford, 
1710. 

756  Saddle  Trunk.    Owned  by  Dr. 

Fitch  of  North  Guilford. 

757  Cocked  Hat.     Worn  by  Major 

Todd  in  Revolution. 

LOANED     BY     JOSEPH     SCRANTON    OF 
MADISON. 

758  Fan  for  Cleaning  Grain.    Over 

100  years  old. 

LOANED   BY   MISS  LUCY   SCRANTON  OF 
MADISON. 

759  Record  Book  of  the  Bishop  of 

London's  Commissary  for 
Pennsylvania.  Rev.  Archi- 
bald Cummings,  1728.  Aft- 
erwards, an  orderly  book  in 
5th  Virginia  Regiment,  1776. 
Finally,  account  book  of 
Sergeant  Abraham  Scranton 
of  East  Guilford  (now  Mad- 
ison), into  whose  possession 
it  came  March  8,  1777.  Said 
to  have  been  found  on  a  bat- 
tle-field in  or  near  Wood- 
brrdge,  N.  J.,  on  day  last 
named. 

760  Continental  Eight-Dollar  Bill, 

1776. 

761  Copy  of  United  States  Consti- 

tution, 1787. 

762  "  Laws  of  Connecticut,"  1751. 


763  "  Divinity  of  God,"  1650.     By 

Fr.  Cheynell. 

764  Pewter  Platter,  1768. 

765  Wooden  Box,  1768. 

766  Wooden    Bottle,    1768.     Used 

for  carrying  drink  into  the 
field. 

767  Glass  Window.    150  years  old. 

768  Spinning  Wheel.    90  years  old. 

769  Four    Half-pence,   1800,    1804, 

1804,  1807. 

770  Seven   Revolutionary   Bullets. 

Brought  home  from  the  war 
by  Abraham  Scranton,  born 
I754- 

771  Bee-box.     Very  ancient. 

772  Linen  Sheet,  1775.     Woven  by 

Mrs.  Mercy  Dowd,  wife -of 
Timothy. 

773  Pair  Wool-cards.   75  years  old. 

774  Pair    Deer-horns.       102   years 

old. 

775  Hatchel  for  Flax. 

LOANED  BY  CHARLES  L.  SCRANTON, 
OF    MADISON. 

776  Portrait  Capt.  Frederick  Lee, 

1818.  Painted  by  Kosciusko, 
in  gratitude  for  being  saved 
and  brought  to  United  States 
in  revenue  cutter  by  Captain 
Lee. 

LOANED   BY  GEORGE  E.  SCRANTON,  OF 
MADISON. 

777  Musket.      Used      by     Abram 

Scranton  in  Revolution. 

LOANED   BY  MISS  HATTIE  T.  SCRAN- 
TON OF  MADISON. 

778  Blanket.       Belonged    to    Joel 

Griswold,  Sr. ,  and  made  by 
his  wife. 

LOANED    BY  GEORGE   M.   SE\VARI). 

779  Charts    used    in   Lancasterian 

School.  Kept  here  1824- 
1829. 

780  Box    Stove.       First    one    cast 

whole;  from  pattern  by  Mar- 
tin Seward.  Still  in  use. 

781  School    Teacher's    Certificate, 

of  Martin  Seward  for  Clap- 
board, Hill  District,  iSn. 


782  Wine  Glass.     7%"  inches  high- 

200  years  old. 

783  Indian  Tomahawk. 

LOANED   BY   MRS.  LEONIDAS   SEWARD- 

784  Red  Riding  Hook  Cloak.  For- 

merly worn  by  Mrs.  Dr. 
Lindsley,  North  Branford. 
125  years  old. 

785  Crocker)'.      Blue   willow   pat- 

tern, 5  pieces. 

LOANED  BY  MRS.  JOHN  L.  SEWARD. 

786  "  Christology."       By     Robert 

Flemming;    1705. 

787  "  The      Blessedness     of     the 

Righteous."  By  John  Howe; 
1742,  Glasgow. 

788  "  Brother  Jonathan."  April  10, 

1841. 

LOANED   BY   MRS.   WILLIAM   SKINNER. 

789  Picture  of  "America  Guided  by 

Wisdom."  Formerly  in  old 
New  Hav'n  Museum,  broken 
up  35  years  ago. 

LOANED   BY   MISS   MARY    C.    SMITH. 

790  Wedding  Slippers.     Worn   by 

Mrs.  Ira  Hoadley,  at  mar- 
riage in  1793.  Made  from 
lining  of  British  soldier's 
coat.  Now  owned  by  her 
grand-daughter. 

791  File  of  Connecticut  Journals. 

1793  and  1794. 

792  Portrait  of  her  mother. 

LOANED   BY   MISS   EMELINE   SMITH  OF 
MADISON. 

793  Flip-glass.      140     years     old. 

Owned  by  Noah  Fowler, 
1733- 

794  Portrait      of      Mrs.      Content 

Smith,  1791.  Mrs.  Smith 
then  was  aged  18;  she  was 
daughter  of  Noah  Fowler; 
married  Daniel  H.  Smith, 
1816. 

795  Arm  Chair.     125  years. old. 

796  Chair.     135  years  old. 

797  Johnson's     Dictionary,      1806. 

Boston,  2nd  American  Edi- 
tion. 


284 


798  Pair    of    Brass    Candlesticks. 

120  years  old. 

799  Oak   Linen   Chest.     180  years 

old. 
Soo  Spinning  Wheel.  115  years 

old. 
Sor  China  Plate,  no  years  old. 

802  John  Milton's  Poems,  1794. 

803  Counterpane.     75  years  old. 

804  Linen  Sheet.     100  years  old. 

805  "Two     Sewing-Silk    Shawls." 

50  years  old. 

LOANED    HY    MISS    E.     P.     B.    SPENCER. 

806  Glass  Pitcher.     Over  .100  years 

old.  First  glass  made  in 
America.  From  northern 
New  York.  Handle  broken 
off. 

807  Ivory  Miniature.     80  years  old. 

Portrait  of  Miss  Spencer's 
mother. 

808  Stays.     Very  old. 

LOANED    BY    HENRY    R.    SPENCER. 

809  Sermons.      1592.     By    Henrie 

Smith  and  others. 

Sio  Portrait  of  his  Father.  Painted 
by  an  artist  80  years  old,  in 
1865. 

811  Portrait  of  his  House,  built 
about  1700.  Painted  by 
same  artist. 


LOANED    BY    SAMUEL    C.    SPENCER. 

812  Flint  Lock  Gun. 

813  Round  Table.     150  years  old. 

814  Old  Chair. 

815  Old  Chair.     Belonged  to  Sal- 

tonstall  family  and  saved 
when  New  London  was 
burned  by  the  British  in 
Revolution. 

816  Bread  Toaster.  Over  100  years 

old. 

817  Fire  Slice.     Belonged   to  Sal- 

tonstall  family. 

818  Tines  of  Pitchfork.     Over  100 

years  old. 


LOANED   BY   MRS.    WILLIAM   SPENCER. 

819  Chair  of  the  Saltonstall  Fam- 

ily. Formerly  owned  by 
Leverett  Vail,  a  descend- 
ant of  the  family.  When 
Arnold  took  New  London 
the  chair  was  on  a  pile  to  be 
burned.  A  bystander  said: 
"The  owner  was  a  peace- 
able man,  an  enemy  to  no 
one."  At  this  remonstrance 
the  articles  were  given  back 
to  the  owner. 

LOANED   BY   ALTON    SPENCER. 

820  Indian  Relics.    Found  in  Guil- 

ford. 

LOANED   BY   A.  G.    SOMMER. 

821  Cane.     Supposed  to  have  been 

carved  by  Indian  Sachem. 

LOANED    BY    MRS.    HENRY    STANNARD. 

822  Gourd.     125    years    old.     Be- 

longed to  her  grandfather, 
Reuben  Norton. 

LOANED   BY   MOSES    J.    STANNARD    OF 
MADISON. 

823  Gun.     Carried  to  Bunker  Hill 

by  Didymus  Dowd;  born 
1746. 

824  Chair.     Over  200  years  old. 

LOANED    BY    REV.    E.    C.    STARR. 

825  Block  of  Stone  House,  Carved 

in  Japan. 

826  Letter   from  George  Washing- 

ton to  Captain  George  Starr 
of  Middletown. 

827  Papers       Concerning       Coast 

Guard  in  Revolution.  By 
William  and  John  Starr, 
Gov.  Matt  Griswold,  Col. 
Return  L.  Meigs  and  In- 
crease Pendleton. 

828  Justice  of  Peace  Papers.     By 

Gen.  Andrew  Ward,  Will- 
iam Starr  and  Gen.  Augustus 
Collins. 

829  Box  made  of  Clapboards  from 

Old  Starr  House.  Built 
1687. 

830  Samples  of  Wedding  Dresses 

of  Five  Generations. 


285 


831  Autograph  of  George  Hill. 

832  Photograph      of       Sideboard. 

Now  owned  by  Starrs  of 
Hartford;  very  fine. 

833  Photograph  of  Church  at  Ash- 

ford,  Kent,  where  Dr.  Com- 
fort Starr  was  warden. 

834  Book  Rack.     Made  for  Burgis 

Starr.  Inlaid  with  wood  from 
old  Burgis  house,  1742;  old 
Starr  house,  1787;  old  Whit- 
field  house,  1639;  old  Samuel 
Lee  house,  1764;  Charter 
Oak,  cocoa  wood,  and  other 
wood  from  Bethany,  Pales- 
tine. 

LOANED  BY  MRS.  JOHN  STARR. 

835  Comfortable.     Made  of  hum- 

hum  bed-curtains.  With  fol- 
lowing exhibits,  owned  by 
William  Starr,  Esq.;  died 
1816,  aged  77. 

836  Looking-glass;  1726. 

837  Tin  Oven. 

838  China  Plates.   Probably  owned 

by  Wm.  Starr's  grandfather, 
Comfort  Starr,  Jr. 

839  Pewter  Platter.     The  three  last 

articles  were  used  in  prepar- 
ing and  serving  dinners  for 
town  officers. 

840  Small  Pink  China  Cup. 

LOANED   BY   MRS.  LEWIS    H.  STEINER. 

841  Records  of  4th  Society;    1731- 

1811.  Including  Records  of 
Baptist  Society,  1820-1823. 

842  Autograph  Sonnet   of   George 

Hill  at  Dedication  of  Hal- 
leek's  Monument  in  Guil- 
ford,  1869. 

843  Treasurer's    Accounts   of    4th 

Society,  1750-1789. 

844  Continental  Money. 

845  Plan  of  the  Green  by  Town's 

Committee,  1729. 

846  Commission  of  Isaac  Tomlin- 
•         son,  as  Lieutenant  in  King's 

American  Dragoons,  Febru- 
ary 23,  1781.  Signed  by  Guy 
Carleton. 

847  "The  Infidel   Preacher,  or  the 

Conversion  of  A.  B.  Gold- 
smith," 1821. 


848  Records   of  Guilford  Library, 

1797-1815. 

849  Old  Arithmetic;  about  1600. 

850  "New  Year's  Discourse,"  1802. 

By  Rev.  John  Elliott,  D.  D., 
of  Madison 

851  "  Discourse  on  Death  of   Rev. 

Amos  Fowler,"  1800.  By 
Rev.  John  Elliott,  D.  D. 

852  "  Funeral  Discourse  for  Rev. 

William  Seward,  of  Killing- 
worth,"  1782.  By  Rev.  Jona- 
than Todd,  of  Madison. 

853  "Right  Improvement  of  Life." 

By  Rev.  Thomas  Ruggles, 
Jr.,  1745- 

854  "Usefulness   and   Expedience 

of  Souldiers."  By  Rev. 
Thomas  Ruggles,  Jr. 

855  "Sermon  at  Ordination  of  Rev. 

Edmund  Ward  over  4th  So- 
ciety," 1734.  By  Rev.  John 
Graham. 

856  "Funeral     Sermon    for     Mrs. 

Amanda  Redfield."  By  Rev. 
Jonathan  Todd,  1783. 

857  "Funeral     Sermon     for     Rev. 

Thomas  Ruggles,  Jr."  By 
Rev.  Jonathan  Todd,  1770. 

858  "Funeral     Sermon     for     Rev. 

Amos  Fowler,"  1800.  By 
Rev.  Thomas  Wells  Bray. 

859  "Funeral    Sermon     for     Rev. 

John  Elliott,  D.  D."  By 
Rev.  Eleazar  T.  Fitch,  1825. 

860  "Sermon  at   Funeral   of    Rev. 

Thomas  Wells  Bray,"  1808. 
By  Rev.  John  Elliott,  D.  D. 

861  "Dissertation  on  the  Right  and 

Obligation  of  the  Civil  Mag- 
istrate to  Take  Care  of  the 
Interests  of  Religion,"  1804. 
By  Rev.  Simon  Backus  of 
North  Madison. 

862  "Pious  Education  of  Children 

the  Great  Duty  of  Parents." 
Preached  at  North  Guilford, 
1800,  by  Rev.  John  Willard 
of  Meriden. 

863  Papers  of  Library  of  Guilford, 

Saybrook,  and  Lyme,    1787. 

864  Report     of     Committee,      on 

boundary  between  Guilford 
and  Kenihvorth,  1699. 


286 


LOANED    BY    MRS.    L.    C.    STONE. 

865  Shoes,       Dress     and      Apron. 

Worn  by  Wm.  Elliot,  born 
1755- 

866  Blanket.     Made     from     petti- 

coat, quilted  and  worn  by 
Beulah  Parmelee.at  marriage 
to  Nathaniel  Elliot,  Jan.  3, 
1754- 

867  Blanket.     Spun  and  woven  by 

Mrs.  Timothy  Stone's 
mother.  Mrs.  Stone  was 
Annie  Griswold,  married 
1789. 

868  Cheese    Press.     Still    in    use. 

Also  cheese  made  in  it  this 
summer. 

869  Two  Pewter  Plates.    Belonged 

to  Col.  Timothy  Stone. 

870  Tin  Roaster.     Used  for  fowls. 

More  than  100  years  old. 

871  Hood.     Worn  by   Mrs.    Laura 

Stone  in  1789. 

872  Knife    and     Fork.     Made    in 

London  and  owned  by  Caleb 
Stone,  1708. 

873  Pewter  Teapot.     Part  of  Sarah 

Rossiter's  wedding  outfit, 
1779- 

LOANED     BY    MRS.    ERASTUS     STORER. 

874  Arm-chair. 

875  Old  Time  Lantern. 

LOANED    BY    HENRY     STONE    OF 
MADISON. 

876  Chair.     Over    200   years    old, 

Owned  by  William  Leete. 
Governor  of  Connecticut, 
1676-1683. 

LOANED    BY    MISS   AMANDA    STONE. 

877  Blue  China. 

LOANED    BY  MRS.  EDGAR  D.   STUDLEY. 

878  Portable  Wooden  Water  Bot- 

tle.  For  game  hunters,  1680. 

879  Sugar  Bowl.     100  years  old. 

880  Tea-cup.     100  years  old. 

LOANED    BY    MRS.    SARAH   TODD. 

88 1  Round  Mahogany  Table.    Top 

large,  round  and  of  one 
piece.  Bought  in  Boston  for 
$16.00.  Belonged  to  her 
grandmother,  no  years  old. 


LOANED    BY    MRS.    LEVI    THRALL. 

882  All  Wool  Blue  and  White  Bed- 

spread. About  70  years  old. 
iMade  entirely  by  Mrs. 
Thrall's  mother. 

LOANED    BY    MRS.    UPSON. 

883  Pipe  Box.    Belonged  to  Abner 

Stone  of  Long  Hill. 

884  Warming  Pan.     100  years  old. 

LOANED  BY  MRS.   CHARLES  WALKLEY. 

885  Powder  Horn.     Jan.  16,  1773. 

Owned  by  Eber  Stone,  Jr. 
Inscription  on  it: 

"My  days  to  come,  if  God  will  lend  ; 
My  King  and  country  I'll  defend." 

886  Loving   Cup.     206   years  old. 

Brought  by  Eben  Stone  from 
England. 

LOANED    BY    DR.    D.    W.    WEBB    OF 
MADISON. 

887  Portrait  of   Mr.  Jehiel  Meigs, 

born  1777.  Uncle  of  Daniel 
and  Jehiel  Meigs  Hand. 

888  Wine     Glass.      Belonging     to 

same  Jehiel  Meigs. 

889  Stays.    Over    150    years    old. 

Owned  by  Dr.  Webb's  great- 
grandmother  and  worn  by 
her  on  her  wedding  day. 

LOANED   BY   MRS.    EMILY   WEED. 

890  Embroidered  Picture,    "Arms 

of  Connecticut." 
i  891     Embroidered     Picture,     "Sun 

Worshipper." 
j  892     Andirons,     ornamented     with 

little  image. 

LOANED    BY    WILLIAM    WEED. 

893  Part  of  Cannon  Ball.     Found 

imbedded  in  timber  of  old 
Abner  Stone  house  at  Long 
Hill.  Probably  a  relic  of 
Revolution. 

LOANED   BY   MRS.    FRED   WELD.. 

894  Bible.     1623.     London.    With 

pedigrees. 

895  Pair    of     Spectacles.     "Came 

over  in  Mayflower." 

896  Scissors,     no  years  old. 


287 


897  Bag.     Made  from  foot  of  Al- 

batross. 

898  Pewter  Porringer. 

899  Glass  Tea  Caddy. 

900  Bronze   Sugar  Bowl.     Luster- 

ware. 

901  Piece    of     Embroidery,     from 

bed-hangings.  Owned  by 
her  Grandmother. 

902  "Articles,  Injunctions,  etc.,  of 

Church  of  England."  Lon- 
don, 1684. 

903  Knife    and    Fork.     Over    100 

years  old.  Blade  originally 
steel,  handle  plated;  now  all 
plated. 

LOANED    BY  MRS.  LEVERETT  WHEDON 
OF   MADISON. 

904  Tea   Caddy.     Over    100  years 

old.    Brought  from  England. 

LOANED   BY    G.    A.    WILCOX   OF 

MADISON. 

905  Military    Order.     To    Captain 

Daniel  Hand,  6th  Co.  in  7th 
Regt.,  signed  by  "Andrew 
Ward,  Jr.,  Col.,"  June  10, 
1776. 

906  Picture   of  old    Meigs    House 

in  Madison.  Painted  by  G. 
W.  King.  (See  399.) 

LOANED   BY     MRS.    JOHN     WILCOX   OF 
MADISON. 

907  "Sermons,"     1740.     By     Rev. 

Jonathan  Todd,  pastor  at 
Madison  (1733-1791  ) 

LOANED   BY    MRS.    EMILY     WILCOX   OF 
MADISON. 

908  First  Madison  Post-Office. 

LOANED    BY     MRS.     ALFRED     WILCOX. 

909  Gold      Ring.     Motto      inside, 

"Love  and  live  happy."  125 
years  old. 

LOANED     BY     HENRY     B.      WILCOX     OF 
MADISON. 

910  Picture   of   old    Field    House. 

Built  by  Cyrus  Field's  an- 
cestor, Ensign  Daniel  Field, 
in  1720. 


LOANED    BY    MRS.    ALBERT    WILDMAN. 

911  China  Tea  Caddy.     Very  old. 

LOANED     BY    MRS.     LEWIS   WILLIAMS. 

912  Pewter   Teapot,    Sugar   Bowl, 

Cream  Pitcher.  Over  200 
years  old.  Belonged  to 
Capt.  Tyler's  ancestors. 

913  Arm-chair.     Belonged  to  Miss 

Clara  Caldwell. 

LOANED   BY  CHARLES   E.  WILLARD  OF 
MADISON. 

914  Entick's    English    Dictionary. 

1784;  London. 

LOANED    BY  JOHN   WINGOOD. 

915  Likenesses  in  Plaster  of  Napo- 

leon Bonaparte  and  Maria 
-Louisa.  Captain  Loomis 
bought  them  in  France  on 
coast  of  Mediterranean. 

LOANED    BY    ELEAZAR    WOODRUFF. 

916  Small  Hair  Trunk.     Used   by 

his  grandfather  in  Revolu- 
tion. Extract  from  letter 
inside. 

LOANED    BY    REV.    E.    E.    BEARDSLEY, 
D.    I).,    OF   NEW   HAVEN. 

917  Picture    of    Samuel    Johnson, 

D.  D.  First  president  of 
Columbia  College;  born  in 
Guilford,  1696. 

LOANED   BY   MRS.    MARY   KELSEY. 

918  Pair   of    Linen  Pillow  Cases. 

Made  from  flax  grown  in 
Guilford  by  her  great-grand- 
mother, Lucy  Brockett.  130 
years  old. 

919  Silver     Spoons.      Owned      by 

Lucy  Brockett. 

920  Pepper     Box.      Belonged     to 

Lucy  Brockett. 

921  Two  Plates.     About  150  years 

old. 

922  Silver      Spoon.      Owned      by 

great-great-grandmother,  Si- 
lena  Brockett. 

923  Silhouettes  of    Mr.    and  Mrs. 

Chauncey  Chittenden.  Made 
65  years  ago. 


288 


924  "  Bible  History."     New  York, 

1814.      Belonged  to  Rowena 
Chittenden. 

925  Small    Plate.     Over  100  years 

old.     Owned  by  Ammi  Fow- 
ler's sister. 


LOANED     BY     HENRY     I'YNCHON     ROB- 
INSON. 

926  Red  Velvet  Side  Saddle.    Mrs. 

Content  Robinson  rode 
down  from  Durham  on  it, 
when  a  bride,  March  29, 
1786. 

LOANED     BY     MRS.     EDGAR     ROSSITER 
OF   NORTH   GUILFORD. 

927  Wooden  Bottle  made  by  Sam- 

uel T.  Loper.     100  years  old. 

LOANED   BY    MRS.    J.    M.    HUNT   OF 
LEETE'S  ISLAND. 

928  Pewter  Basin. 

929  Pewter  Platter. 

930  Child's  Blanket  and  Cap. 


931  Child's    Chair.     Belonged    to 

Horace  Norton.  100  years 
old. 

932  Candlestick    with    homemade 

candle. 

933  Snuffers  and  Tray. 

934  Foot  Stove. 

LOANED   BY    MRS.     JOHN    L.    SEWARD. 

935  Glass  Mug. 

LOANED   BY   YALE  UNIVERSITY. 

936  English    and    Hebrew   Gram- 

mar, 2nd  edition,  by  Samuel 
Johnson,  D.  D.,  London, 
1771- 

LOANED   BY   JOHN   DUDLEY. 

937  Sermon  on  the  Death  of  Rev. 

Thomas  Ruggles,  Sr.,"  by 
Rev.  Elisha  Williams. 

938  Foot   Stove.     Containing  Flat 

Iron. 

LOANED  BY  MRS.  GEORGE  W.  HULL. 

939  Chesterfield's    "Principles    of 

Politeness,"  1789. 


TREASURER'S    REPORT. 


RECEIPTS. 

Order  on  Town  Treasurer,       -                 $  1,000  oo 

Cash  from  H.  L.  Harrison,  10  oo 

$1,010  oo 

EXPENSES. 

Bills  paid  Committee  on  Express  and 

Transportation,                                  -  $38  oo 

Bills  paid  Committee  on  Entertainment,  444   14 

"       "                           "    Invitations,       -  27  70 

"   Carriages,  42  oo 

"             "           "   Music,       -       -  150  oo 

"       "  "  "  Numbering  Old 

Houses,  5   50 

"       "             "           "    Printing,  1 1  60 

"       "             "           "    Decorations,    -  113  75 

"       "             "           "   Reception,  .  4  92 

"       "             "           "   Relics,  38  37 

"       "             "           "    Procession,       -  7  oo 

"       "             "           "   Publication,      -  15  oo 

"       "    Secretary,      -  n    12 

909  10 


Balance  to  b«*returned  to  Town  Treasurer,  $  roo  90 

L.   R.    ELLIOTT,   TREASURER. 
GUILFORD,  CONN.,  Oct.  14,  1889. 


PKOCEEDINGS 


Celebration    of    the    25<Dth    Anniversary 


SETTLEMENT  OF  GUILFORD, 

September  8th,  9th  and   10th,   1889. 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  LIBRARY 

Lo*  Angeles 
This  book  is  DUE  on  the  last  date  stamped  below. 


°Zr   HE  ^'NEWALS 


APR  13 1987 


3  1158  01198  6931 


A    000108785    7 


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